A man was allegedly killed by a group of artisanal miners for insulting their drinking mate.

A source close to the incident said Thembani Ngwenya (26) was boozing with his drinking mate Bekithemba Dube(23) who is an artisanal miner at a nearby mine on Saturday behind Hope Valley shops in Kensington plots.

The source went on to say the pair had an argument over a petty issue. The two exchanged insults and at the height of it Thembani hurled an insult at Bekithemba saying: “ms*n*kanyoko(motherf…..) and that stoked more fires. Bekithemba punched him and within a few minutes a group of artisanal miners joined in and attacked Thembani.

“They kicked him and hit him with fists all over the body. He fell down and bled excessively. He later fell unconscious in a pool of blood,” said the source.

A neighbour who witnessed the incident reported the matter to the police leading to the arrest of Bekithemba but his alleged accomplices are yet to be arrested, said the source.

Thembani’s body was taken to the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) for post-mortem.

Bulawayo acting police spokeperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele confirmed the incident and urged community members to resolve their differences amicably than to engage in violence saying it leads to unnecessary loss of life.

– BMetro