Tsholotsho woman jailed 17 years for murdering stepmother

A 33-year-old Tsholotsho woman has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for murdering her stepmother following a dispute over her late father’s estate.

Linah Ntombiyakwabo Mzimeli was convicted of murder by the High Court sitting in Hwange after it found that she had planned and carried out the killing of her 58-year-old stepmother, Jennifer Dube. Dube’s decomposing body was discovered in a shallow grave in the family garden nearly four months after she disappeared.

The court heard that, in the weeks leading up to the murder, Mzimeli approached several neighbours seeking assistance to kill Dube. She allegedly complained that her stepmother was refusing to share benefits from her late father’s estate.

The neighbours refused to take part in the plot. Evidence presented before the court showed that Mzimeli then said she would seek assistance from her boyfriend, Nkosiyeza Mnkandla, who remains at large.

In what prosecutors described as an effort to cover up the crime, Mzimeli repeatedly told neighbours that Dube had travelled to

Lupane to collect a passport before proceeding to Victoria Falls to buy goods for resale.

For five consecutive days, she visited neighbouring homesteads claiming that she was afraid to stay alone while her stepmother was away. Her explanation initially eased suspicion, but concern mounted as Dube failed to return home.

She was never seen again.

The case took a dramatic turn on 2 September 2025 when police received information suggesting that Dube’s disappearance may have been linked to foul play.

Acting on the tip-off, investigators searched the homestead and made a grim discovery. Dube’s body was found buried in a shallow grave in the family garden, concealed beneath maize stalks and a door frame.

The body, which was in an advanced state of decomposition, had been wrapped in a blanket, tied with a three-metre electric cable and covered with pieces of cloth.

Investigations revealed that shortly after Dube’s disappearance, Mzimeli left the village and relocated.
to Fort Rixon, where she secured employment.

During the trial, the State led evidence from neighbours who told the court that Mzimeli had openly discussed plans to kill her stepmother over the inheritance dispute before Dube went missing.

Police investigators also testified that Mzimeli was the last known person to be seen with the deceased before her disappearance.

In her defence, Mzimeli denied any involvement in the murder.

She maintained that Dube had travelled to Lupane and intended to continue to Victoria Falls. She also alleged that police had forced her to make a warned and cautioned statement and denied ever soliciting anyone to help kill her stepmother.

Mzimeli further told the court that she had accepted Dube as a mother figure following the death of her biological mother and insisted that there had been no hostility between them.

However, the court rejected her version of events.

After reviewing all the evidence, the court found that the State had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The court concluded that Mzimeli, acting in concert with her boyfriend, strangled Dube with an electric cable before burying her body in the family garden in an attempt to conceal the crime.

Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nokuthula Moyo, who was sitting on circuit in Hwange, convicted Mzimeli of murder and sentenced her to 17 years’ imprisonment.

State counsel Mncedisi Dube prosecuted the matter, while Mzimeli was represented by Linda Mthombeni of Dube, Nkala and Company.