Police Arrest Two Mutoko Men For Kidnapping Four Children

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has confirmed the arrest of two men in Mutoko for allegedly kidnapping four primary school children.

In a statement, ZRP Senior Staff Officer (Press and Public Relations), Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said police are conducting investigations to establish the motive behind the kidnappings. He said:

The Zimbabwe Republic Police confirms the arrest of Tapiwa Munetsi (20) and Tatenda Obey Mutize (30) in connection with a case of kidnapping involving four Mudzonga Primary School pupils aged six (06), seven (07), nine (09), and seven (07) in Mutoko.

On 6th July 2022, at around 1500 hours, Tapiwa Munetsi met the four juveniles, three females and one male, on their way home at the school grounds.

He took the pupils hostage while accusing them of having picked an undisclosed amount of cash, which he claimed to have lost.

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Munetsi then took the pupils to a mountain adjacent to the school on the pretext that he was taking them to the Police.

While on the mountain, he stripped the children naked before taking them to a bush area near his residence, about 8 km from the school.

Along the way, one of the juveniles escaped and alerted her parents, leading to a search which resulted in the location of the victims in the bush area at Sonhera Village.

The suspect tried to escape and was later arrested while hiding at his residence.

Upon questioning, Tapiwa Munetsi implicated Tatenda Obey Mutize as the one who had sent him to look for children who are in grade 5 and below.

The victims have since been referred to Mutoko District Hospital for medical examination.

The Police are now conducting comprehensive investigations to establish the motive behind the kidnapping.