Bulawayo High Court judge, Justice Maxwell Takuva has postponed the resumption of trial of a case involving a gold dealer accused of murdering a member of a rival mining gang in Esigodini, to March 6.
The 44-year-old gold dealer, Baron Dube, was supposed to appear in court on Thursday in connection with the death of artisanal miner Prince Antony Bvundura but trial failed to resume after it surfaced that he (Dube) was not properly served with papers.
Bvundura was shot dead in the heat of a fight over a mining claim located at Block 13 Atlas Mine in sleepy Esigodini. A one Tendai Musanangura is said to be the rightful owner of the mining claim Ten more witnesses, including ballistics experts, are expected to testify when the trial continues on March 6.
To date, only two witnesses, who include Masanangura, have testified.
It is the state’s case that on September 26, 2018, the deceased went to work at Block 13 Atlas Mine in Esigodini in the company of his workmates. Court papers reveal that on the same day, Dube arranged a gang of about 20 people so that they could disperse everyone and take over the mine where there was a gold rush.
“At about 11PM, the accused person armed himself with two guns and his accomplices were carrying machetes, axes, shovels and picks. He drove to the mine using his Toyota Land Cruiser carrying his gang and on arrival at the mine, he chased away all miners, claiming he had been granted authority to operate at the mine by the owner,” read court papers.
It was stated that the deceased, who was part of a group of miners fleeing during the skirmishes, was shot and he died on the spot. Post-mortem results indicate that the late Bvundura’s cause of death was a gunshot wound,, heart destruction and hypovolemic shock.
State Media
