A man from Mutare, Stephen Musimwa, is accused of murdering his wife, Gladys Manyaire (27), on suspicion of infidelity. He then reportedly used her phone to send misleading text messages to her mother, making her believe her daughter was alive and working as a domestic worker in Chipinge.
Gladys’s body was discovered in a stream in Mwaamba Village under Chief Zimunya’s jurisdiction, in an advanced state of decomposition with deep cuts and a knife suspected to be the murder weapon found nearby.
According to Mrs. Winnie Manyaire, Gladys’s mother, she had been receiving text messages from her daughter’s phone number, suggesting that Gladys was working in Chipinge. This led Mrs. Manyaire to believe her daughter was alive.
Assistant Inspector Wiseman Chinyoka, acting Manicaland provincial police spokesperson, confirmed the case. He suggested that Musimwa had been texting his mother-in-law using Gladys’s phone. The couple had a domestic dispute over infidelity allegations, prompting Gladys to return to her parents’ home with their child.
On December 29, 2023, Musimwa contacted Gladys, asking her to come to Mutare to get a birth certificate for their child. Following her mother’s advice, Gladys went to meet Musimwa on December 30, 2023, and was last seen alive on that day.
Her body was found on January 4, 2024, by a 10-year-old boy searching for turkeys. The body, dressed in a blue jean skirt, maroon top, and maroon and white jersey, was found in a stream, with her sandals nearby. Due to the body’s advanced decomposition, identifying specific injuries was difficult, but cuts were observed on her left hand fingers. A kitchen knife was found about 3.5 meters from the body.
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Mrs. Manyaire revealed to the police that she had been receiving texts from Gladys’s phone number, pretending to be Gladys, claiming she was working in Chipinge. She also received messages from Musimwa’s number, inquiring about his son and claiming Gladys was not answering his calls. Musimwa even visited Mrs. Manyaire’s home on January 3, 2024, around 1 am to drop off a smartphone for his child.
After reviewing Mrs. Manyaire’s text messages, the police suspect Musimwa was using Gladys’s phone to send the misleading messages. The consistency in the messages from both numbers to Mrs. Manyaire’s phone led to this suspicion.
Assistant Inspector Chinyoka has appealed to the public for any information that could lead to Musimwa’s arrest, urging them to contact their nearest police station.
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