SOLDIER FOUND GUILTY OF MURDERING EX-GIRLFRIEND IN ROCHDALE
A man convicted of murder after a violent stabbing spree that resulted in the death of his ex-girlfriend has been identified as Josphat Mutekedza.Originally from Zimbabwe, Mutekedza served as a private in the Territorial Army.
He was charged with obsessively following nurse Miriam Nyazema before launching a brutal attack.
The incident took place in Shawclough Way, Rochdale, during July of the previous year.
Reports indicated that Mutekedza waited for Miriam outside her home after breaking in.
When she arrived accompanied by a male companion, he became furious, grabbed her around the neck, and threatened her with an imitation firearm.
A struggle followed, during which Mutekedza stabbed Miriam 23 times in her face, head, and chest, with such force that the blade shattered and remained embedded in her back.
Although Mutekedza claimed he acted in self-defense, asserting that Miriam had pinned him down before he retrieved a knife from a drawer to defend himself, a jury at Bolton Crown Court deliberated for only one hour before finding him guilty of murder.
At the scene, he was detained wearing a white shirt covered in blood and had made two emergency calls saying, “I stabbed someone” and “she was cheating on me.” While he admitted to killing Miriam, he denied intentionally murdering her, maintaining that he was defending himself.
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Friday.
