Discover moreVideo picture galleriesPolitical party analysisLogin registration portalA 24-year-old Mabvuku man accused of killing his two young children before setting their one-room cabin ablaze appeared in court from his hospital bed on Tuesday facing two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

Gift Muyengwa appeared before Harare magistrate Ruth Moyo, who remanded him in custody and advised him to apply for bail at the High Court.

Muyengwa is accused of murdering his children, Audin Muyengwa (6) and Ropafadzo Muyengwa (3), and attempting to kill his wife during the incident.

According to the State, the family was asleep in their one-room wooden cabin in Mabvuku on July 20, 2026, when the alleged attack occurred.

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Prosecutors said the complainant woke up feeling dizzy before discovering that she had been stabbed.

"She woke up from her sleep feeling dizzy only to notice the accused person standing in front of her armed with a kitchen knife.

"She further discovered that she was bleeding from a stab wound on her head. The accused went on and attacked her by stabbing her again on the neck with the kitchen knife," the State alleged.

The prosecution said the woman attempted to restrain Muyengwa but was stabbed a third time on her left finger before fleeing the cabin undressed while screaming for help.

The State alleges that after she escaped, Muyengwa fatally attacked the couple's two children, who were asleep inside the cabin.

He allegedly then set the cabin on fire while the children remained inside. Their bodies were later recovered burnt beyond recognition.

After the incident, prosecutors allege that Muyengwa attempted to take his own life by stabbing himself in the chest and stomach.

He was found lying on the ground at the scene, arrested and taken to hospital under police guard for treatment.