BY STAFF REPORTER
A 39-year-old man from Musuna area has been sentenced to an effective 19 years in prison after the Hwange Regional Court found him guilty of indecent assault and aggravated indecent assault against his 36-year-old cousin-in-law.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) , the offender targeted the woman on two separate nights at her homestead in Breamland Gardens, subjecting her to a series of disturbing assaults while she slept under her mosquito net.
The first attack occurred on 31 August 2025 at around 10PM. Prosecutors said the man crept into the complainant’s mosquito net while she was sleeping facing downwards, hugged her from behind, and began touching her inappropriately. She woke up and confronted him, prompting him to flee — but not before bizarrely offering her “sugar beans” as payment for her silence.
Although the complainant informed her husband, he initially begged her not to report the matter in an attempt to protect his younger brother.
Two days later, on 2 September at around 11PM, the offender returned. This time, he again slipped under the mosquito net and molested the woman, forcibly groping her and inserting his finger into her private parts. When he discovered that the complainant was menstruating, he stopped and pleaded for forgiveness, offering beans once again and urging her to sweep away his footprints to erase evidence of his presence.
After the second attack, the survivor refused to remain silent and reported the matter to the police, leading to the offender’s arrest and prosecution.
He was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment for indecent assault and 18 years for aggravated indecent assault.
In a statement, the NPA warned that the justice system will not be lenient with sexual offenders, stressing that “the sanctity of a woman’s body and the safety of her home must be respected. Family ties should never be used as a shield to silence victims of abuse.”