THE Judiciary is imposing stiff penalties on convicted machete-wielding gangs to deter would-be offenders in the wake of a surge in cases of violent machete attacks on ordinary citizens, miners and businesspeople across the country.

Officially opening the 2020 legal year of the Gweru High Court circuit yesterday, Bulawayo High Court judge, Justice Martin Makonese, warned the machete wielding gangs saying, time has come to end the menace.

He said stiffer sentences handed down in such cases should send a clear message that violence of any form will not be tolerated in a civilised and democratic society.

“During the year under review, there has been an upsurge in cases of violent crimes committed by marauding gangs of machete-wielding youths.

The country has seen violent gang wars amongst artisanal miners never seen before in the history of the country.
“Scores of innocent people have been injured and maimed.

Lives have been lost. There has been a relentless surge in youth gangs going on the rampage in all provinces of the country attacking and injuring people.

In all this, these criminal elements have resorted to the use of deadly machetes, axes, shovels, knives and other dangerous weapons,” he said.

Justice Makonese said the machete-wielding gangs had the tenacity to attack and even kill policemen in uniform.

“Unruly terror gangs recently killed a policeman, Constable Wonder Hokoyo, in Kadoma. Let it be known that we as the Judiciary will hand stiff penalties where appropriate on anycrimes.a convicted of these heinous crimes.a

‘‘These sentences handed down in such cases will send out a clear message that violence of any form will not be tolerated in a civilised and democratic society,” he said.- State media