UPDATE: Mob Delivers Savage Beating to Cop-Killing Armed Robber in Sanyati
It was a brutal twist of fate as if slain Ruwa businessman Joseph Mutangadura reached from the grave to avenge his own death.
The man accused of pulling the trigger in Mutangadura’s cold-blooded murder, Vengesai Jabulani Mutasa (41), met his downfall at the hands of an enraged mob in Sanyati over the weekend.
Witnesses described the scene as “vengeance made flesh” villagers pouncing on the fugitive armed robber who had moments earlier gunned down Detective Constable Courage Muchechesi at Sanyati Police Station.
Mutasa, who had eluded arrest for weeks, was cornered, stripped, and pummeled by dozens of furious residents.
“He thought he could keep running, but people were fed up,” said one witness.
“They beat him with everything sticks, stones, fists until he could no longer move.”
ALSO READ: Second Suspect Nabbed in Mutangadura Murder Case
National police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the arrest, saying Mutasa’s capture came through the courage and anger of ordinary citizens.
“He was arrested with the assistance of the public after being assaulted by a mob,” Comm Nyathi told H-Metro.
“The suspect was wanted in connection with the murder of businessman Joseph Mutangadura in August.”
Police say Mutasa had earlier escaped a dramatic shootout with detectives in Sanyati, fleeing half-naked after injuring a tenant and a police detective.
Moments later, he stormed Sanyati Police Station, where he shot Constable Muchechesi in cold blood before robbing a man of US$5 and fleeing again.
But this time, his luck ran out.
“Members of the public in Chakari, Patchway, Kadoma, and Sanyati joined forces, tracked him down, and delivered mob justice,” Comm Nyathi said.
“He was armed with the same pistol used to kill both the policeman and Mutangadura.”
By the time police arrived, Mutasa lay battered and bleeding, the once-feared gunman reduced to a groaning heap.
“He sustained serious injuries and is receiving treatment,” said Comm Nyathi.
“But he’s alive, and now he’ll face the law.”
Three of his accomplices Given Mandizadza (34), Phillip Mutasa (38), and Anesu Machadu (32) are already in custody facing charges over Mutangadura’s murder.
For many in Sanyati, the mob beating felt like poetic justice.
“It’s like Mutangadura’s spirit refused to rest until this man was caught,” said another villager.
“He died a cruel death, and now the killer has tasted the same pain.”
Mutangadura, a respected businessman, was gunned down at his Ruwa home on August 17, 2025, by seven armed robbers.
