The Sunday Mail
Sunday Mail Reporter
A WOMAN of questionable sanity was last week spared jail after killing her two-year-old baby by sitting on top of her until she suffocated.
Shuvai Machongwe (34) of Chalisenga village 1, under Chief Sinakatenge in Binga, walked away a free woman after High Court Judge Christopher Banda-Dube cleared her of killing her daughter, Gaudencia Maria Sibanda, because she was suffering from an episode of schizophrenia, a mental disorder.
During trial, Machongwe denied the charges, arguing that she was suffering from a mental illness at the time she committed the offence and could not be held criminally liable for her conduct.
The court heard that on May 5, 2023, Thandiwe Munsaka, who shares a husband with Machongwe, observed that she was behaving strangely.
Machongwe spent the entire night singing church songs while pacing up and down.
Two days later, around 7am, Munsaka left the family homestead to fetch water at a nearby river and left Machongwe alone with Gaudencia.
Upon returning, Munsaka was told that Machongwe had left home for the shopping centre with her baby.
She later tracked Machongwe to the shopping centre, where fellow villagers told her that Machongwe had been seen venturing into a nearby bush.
Munsaka then followed Machongwe into the bush, where she found her still sitting on top of Gaudencia’s corpse.
She then sought assistance from fellow villagers, leading to her arrest.
During trial, the State and her legal representatives agreed that the court returns a special verdict in terms of the Mental Health Act (Chapter 15:12) since it was clear Machongwe was suffering from a mental disorder.
In his ruling, Justice Banda-Dube said: “In my opinion, there is a reasonable possibility that at the time of the alleged crime, the accused was suffering from a mental disorder (schizophrenia).
“She was mentally disturbed to such an extent that she should not be held legally responsible for her actions.”
Justice Banda-Dube committed her to prison pending transfer to a mental health institution for treatment.
