Showing the cops the ropes...
When police in Gweru found Charles Zulu’s body lying in a pool of his blood one morning in May last year, they might have sent out word about a gun-totting loose canon on the prowl. And, given the grisly nature with which Zulu was slain, the police might have warned the public not to approach the suspect, who must have been in the same league as the heartless Briton, Raoul Moat, who shot and killed his ex-girlfriend’s current partner the very day he was released from prison.
Not once might the law agents have suspected that the killer could be a greedy, fresh-faced sixteen-year-old boy from Kwekwe who was supposed to be asleep the time Zulu met his fate. And, in their investigations and public warnings, nobody ever thought of leaking the same words of wisdom to ‘The Beast’ of Chivi.
Zulu was a Gweru-based employee of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings. On the fateful night, the 58-year-old man was traveling towards Kwekwe when he picked up a teenager who had flagged for a lift. The teenager – who cannot be identified for minority reasons – said he was going to Kwekwe. But at the Athlone traffic island, Zulu was shocked to see his passenger produce a pistol, aim it at his chest and pull the trigger. The impact killed Zulu instantly.
The boy dumped Zulu’s body by the roadside, took the driver’s seat of the Nissan Hardbody, made a U-turn and took the road leading to Chiredzi.
As he approached Chivi, his new steal grumbled of thirst and he pulled it into the Growth Point to fill its belly. The minor knew he had no money on him so he ignored the conventional fuel stations, opting instead for the parallel market dealers whom he looked to coax into a barter trade – after all he was offering an irresistible trade.
Someone directed him to see ‘The Beast.’
The Beast – that is how the Chivi locals affectionately call Steven Maturure (34), more so because in his heyday, he was, as the cliché goes, as strong as an ox. But Maturure’s beast years are now but a fond memory, ever since he was diagnosed with arthritis in 2004.
The man refuses to let the metabolic mishap dampen his life, however, as – his crutches in tow – he engages in various menial jobs to finance his livelihood. That day he was resting, and enjoying a drink in the echoing hall called Magwizi Hotel.
“I don’t know who directed him to me,” smiles The Beast. “But I figured that since I am one of the most recognizable faces in the area, people think I have an idea of where everything can be found.”
He left his brew and hopped home in the company of Lloyd Makotose, a teacher friend from the same area, to meet his prospective customer. A former footballer and bouncer, The Beast admits he has no experience in any detective work.
“But as I approached the vehicle and saw the age of its driver, I became suspicious,” he says. “Besides, the lad was acting a bit dodgy, as if he was uneasy about something.”
The arthritis might have slowed Maturure’s speed to a mere hop, but it did nothing to affect his boldness. Or you could call it bravado; but he did take more steps towards the vehicle, whereupon closer inspection, he noticed the features on the windscreen that identified the car as belonging to the national broadcaster.
But it was not the windscreen and its badges that caught the Beast’s eye; it was something beyond the screen, and it kept playing in his mind until it broke his sweat.
“It was blood,” he exclaims. “There were a lot of blood stains on the driver’s seat. It seemed the boy had done a poor job of removing them, maybe because it was dark when he did so.”
Now, the Beast could understand the reason for the kid’s restlessness – and the reason for his barter offer.
“He had offered to leave his pistol as collateral in return for fuel. He said he would come back for it as soon as he had the cash from somewhere in Chiredzi where he was headed to.”
Maturure listened attentively before notifying the teenager to wait outside while he conferred his offer with Makotose inside the house.
They returned with their faces shining; and their customer’s face shone too – his problem was about to be solved; you just cannot help smiling when a plan comes together can you? So the boy smiled.
Until he heard the chilling command.
“Hands up!” it was the Beast being beastly. He had his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “I have a gun and will use it if you try anything funny.”
With his experience of the numbing effects a gun has on people, the boy threw himself to the ground, pleading for mercy.
“But I had no gun,” the Beast says, laughing as he recalls the danger of it all. “The pockets of my jacket where just bulging, and he must have thought the gun was in there.”
It was a very dangerous gamble, the Beast admits; but then fear has long not been a factor for him. Quickly, the two tied their captive with electricity cables before taking him to Chivi Police Station. But not before had dangled them a carrot, promising to give them five beasts for their silence.
The boy said he had a relative in Chiredzi who had pledged to give him 22 cattle if he could find a truck for him. So the temptation led him into a heinous felony. But it also landed him in soup, as he was convicted of murder at the Gweru High Court. But in defence last month, he said that he was insane when he committed the offence. At the time of going to press, the judge had ordered that a doctor confirm his insanity claims.
Maturure is not a member of the Neighbourhood Watch Committee; his only association with the police being that he is friends with most of the constabulary. But for his and Makotose’s troubles, the two were rewarded with the Cop of the Quarter and Cop of the Year Awards in the province.
And there is one thing that will stay in the Beast’s mind for a long time, which happened the day he was crowned the model ‘cop’ in Masvingo last year.
“I shook the hand of (Deputy Commissioner General Administration, Godwin) VaMatanga’s hand,” he chuckles.
Not once might the law agents have suspected that the killer could be a greedy, fresh-faced sixteen-year-old boy from Kwekwe who was supposed to be asleep the time Zulu met his fate. And, in their investigations and public warnings, nobody ever thought of leaking the same words of wisdom to ‘The Beast’ of Chivi.
Zulu was a Gweru-based employee of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings. On the fateful night, the 58-year-old man was traveling towards Kwekwe when he picked up a teenager who had flagged for a lift. The teenager – who cannot be identified for minority reasons – said he was going to Kwekwe. But at the Athlone traffic island, Zulu was shocked to see his passenger produce a pistol, aim it at his chest and pull the trigger. The impact killed Zulu instantly.
The boy dumped Zulu’s body by the roadside, took the driver’s seat of the Nissan Hardbody, made a U-turn and took the road leading to Chiredzi.
As he approached Chivi, his new steal grumbled of thirst and he pulled it into the Growth Point to fill its belly. The minor knew he had no money on him so he ignored the conventional fuel stations, opting instead for the parallel market dealers whom he looked to coax into a barter trade – after all he was offering an irresistible trade.
Someone directed him to see ‘The Beast.’
The Beast – that is how the Chivi locals affectionately call Steven Maturure (34), more so because in his heyday, he was, as the cliché goes, as strong as an ox. But Maturure’s beast years are now but a fond memory, ever since he was diagnosed with arthritis in 2004.
The man refuses to let the metabolic mishap dampen his life, however, as – his crutches in tow – he engages in various menial jobs to finance his livelihood. That day he was resting, and enjoying a drink in the echoing hall called Magwizi Hotel.
“I don’t know who directed him to me,” smiles The Beast. “But I figured that since I am one of the most recognizable faces in the area, people think I have an idea of where everything can be found.”
He left his brew and hopped home in the company of Lloyd Makotose, a teacher friend from the same area, to meet his prospective customer. A former footballer and bouncer, The Beast admits he has no experience in any detective work.
“But as I approached the vehicle and saw the age of its driver, I became suspicious,” he says. “Besides, the lad was acting a bit dodgy, as if he was uneasy about something.”
The arthritis might have slowed Maturure’s speed to a mere hop, but it did nothing to affect his boldness. Or you could call it bravado; but he did take more steps towards the vehicle, whereupon closer inspection, he noticed the features on the windscreen that identified the car as belonging to the national broadcaster.
But it was not the windscreen and its badges that caught the Beast’s eye; it was something beyond the screen, and it kept playing in his mind until it broke his sweat.
“It was blood,” he exclaims. “There were a lot of blood stains on the driver’s seat. It seemed the boy had done a poor job of removing them, maybe because it was dark when he did so.”
Now, the Beast could understand the reason for the kid’s restlessness – and the reason for his barter offer.
“He had offered to leave his pistol as collateral in return for fuel. He said he would come back for it as soon as he had the cash from somewhere in Chiredzi where he was headed to.”
Maturure listened attentively before notifying the teenager to wait outside while he conferred his offer with Makotose inside the house.
They returned with their faces shining; and their customer’s face shone too – his problem was about to be solved; you just cannot help smiling when a plan comes together can you? So the boy smiled.
Until he heard the chilling command.
“Hands up!” it was the Beast being beastly. He had his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “I have a gun and will use it if you try anything funny.”
With his experience of the numbing effects a gun has on people, the boy threw himself to the ground, pleading for mercy.
“But I had no gun,” the Beast says, laughing as he recalls the danger of it all. “The pockets of my jacket where just bulging, and he must have thought the gun was in there.”
It was a very dangerous gamble, the Beast admits; but then fear has long not been a factor for him. Quickly, the two tied their captive with electricity cables before taking him to Chivi Police Station. But not before had dangled them a carrot, promising to give them five beasts for their silence.
The boy said he had a relative in Chiredzi who had pledged to give him 22 cattle if he could find a truck for him. So the temptation led him into a heinous felony. But it also landed him in soup, as he was convicted of murder at the Gweru High Court. But in defence last month, he said that he was insane when he committed the offence. At the time of going to press, the judge had ordered that a doctor confirm his insanity claims.
Maturure is not a member of the Neighbourhood Watch Committee; his only association with the police being that he is friends with most of the constabulary. But for his and Makotose’s troubles, the two were rewarded with the Cop of the Quarter and Cop of the Year Awards in the province.
And there is one thing that will stay in the Beast’s mind for a long time, which happened the day he was crowned the model ‘cop’ in Masvingo last year.
“I shook the hand of (Deputy Commissioner General Administration, Godwin) VaMatanga’s hand,” he chuckles.
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