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Healer arrested over Bindura triple murders

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By Staff Reporter

A suspect was arrested in Dotito, Mashonaland Central, on Thursday in connection with the death of three men whose bodies were found near a dam at Bata Farm, Bindura, last Sunday.

Sources close to the investigation revealed that the suspect is believed to be a n’anga (traditional healer) whom the deceased had earlier consulted.

“Police picked up a traditional healer, Isaac Diningo (45) in connection with the death of the three men. He is a n’anga from Madziva. He was arrested on Thursday, April 29 in Chishoko village, under Chief Dotito in Mt Darwin.

“He led police to where he was keeping the concoction he gave to the three men. On the way, the n’anga attempted to flee using his motorbike but police managed to apprehend him.

“It is believed he had an accomplice when he allegedly fed the men with an unknown concoction. His accomplice is on the run.”

The source said the deceased are believed to have consulted the n’anga seeking assistance to boost their fledgling business.

“It is said they had a lot of money and they wanted some charms to help them in boosting their business. It is not clear how much these men were carrying.

“Maybe the n’anga desired the cash these men had and decided to kill them before dumping the bodies at the farm,” added the source.

National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi could not give details on the matter yesterday.

“As police, we are conducting investigations. If there are ritual issues or business deals which were being conducted, we will investigate all those allegations. If there is a suspect who is on the run and whether he is a sangoma or not, we will investigate,” he said.

Villagers at Bata Farm in Bindura awoke to the sight of the three bodies on April 25 near a dam with their vehicle, a silver Honda CRV parked close by.

When Stephen Chari (37), a member of the neighbourhood watch committee responded to a distress call by one of the villagers who stumbled upon a person he deemed drunk, he immediately knew what he was looking at a chilling crime scene.

The bodies were near a bus stop along the Bindura-Mt Darwin Road and about half a kilometre from Umfurudzi toll gate

In the aftermath of the incident, the community agreed on a 6pm curfew.

A stone’s throw away from the dam is Mr Nocias Janhi’s homestead who said he heard nothing, not even cars arriving or people struggling.

He no longer goes outside his house during the night.

On the Sunday, Tinashe Kabaira left home at around 4am with his cattle drawn scotch cart to water his garden as per his daily routine.

Upon reaching the dam, he found a Honda CRV blocking the pathway leading to the dam.

“When I reached the dam I saw a man sleeping and I called out but there was no response. I concluded that he was drunk but when I went closer I discovered that he was not breathing. I immediately went to Chari’s homestead and we went back to the scene where we discovered two more bodies,” narrated Kabaira.

“This event has unsettled this whole community. We never expected to witness something this sinister. Pictures of this event continue to haunt us and constantly we are reminded of this through social media.

“This dam provides water for gardening, livestock and laundry but after this event people stopped coming to the dam.”

Mrs Mary Chinakidzwa said: “It looks like these three people were not killed at this dam. The bodies were only dumped here. The crime scene was not disturbed and does not indicate a struggle or dragging of bodies.

“Their clothes were clean and they had no physical injuries except one of them who was bleeding from the mouth,” said Mr Kenias Kanyama.

Chief Mutumba said after the police complete their investigation there is need to cleanse the area to get rid of avenging spirits that may cause problems in the area.

“Traditionally a person must not pass away under unclear conditions. This casts a dark spirit in our area and such an event might recur. The scene is close to the highway and we might witness accidents,” said the chief.

Two of the dead men have been identified as Medio Kashiri (52) and Anthony Ndawana also aged 52.

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