Businesswoman hires 4 men to kidnap married boyfriend

A Beitbridge businesswoman has been arrested by police for allegedly hiring four men including South Africans, to kidnap her married boyfriend whom they thoroughly beat up and took away his car after he refused to divorce his wife.

Tapiwa Priscillah Hillary Moyo, who is no stranger to crime, is reported to have hired the gang on Monday evening to beat up Gibson Karonga.

In 2012 the woman was arrested for stealing R224 000 from illegal foreign currency dealers after misrepresenting to them that she had a potential buyer for the money.

She was jailed but later released in 2013 during the Presidential Amnesty.

The gang is said to have bundled up Karonga into the boot of a Toyota Mark X vehicle when he was dropping off Moyo at her house.

They drove him to an unknown area in the bush where they tortured him for seven hours, threatening to burn him alive if he refused to give in to Moyo's demands.

It is reported that the woman ordered him to hand over the vehicle and papers of a house he built during their happy days, claiming that she funded the projects.

Sources said yesterday that the woman, who owns Kamogkelo Clearing Services, has been in love with the married man, who was also the managing director of her company for the past two years.

They said things came to a head on Monday when Karonga stuck to his guns that he was not leaving his lawfully wedded wife for a mistress.

Matabeleland South police spokesperson Inspector Phlilisani Ndebele confirmed the incident yesterday that was recorded under CR 35/12/16.

He, however, declined to give further details. "The matter is still under investigations. We cannot disclose a lot of details at this stage," he said.

Karonga, who has since been discharged from Beitbridge District Hospital, confirmed that he had been in a relationship with Moyo, but dismissed her claims of buying residential stand and a car for him.

"We were business partners apart from the relationship and her claims of having uplifted my life are just a case of sour grapes.

"I went through a hard time during the seven hours in the bush at some point the men shoved papers in my hip pockets which they light in a vain attempt to burn me. One of them later had a change of heart and put the fire off," he said.

The man said he was released into Moyo's custody after being coerced to sign off his properties under duress.

Karonga was rescued after he managed to send a text message to his brother who promptly informed the police.

When asked to respond to the allegations yesterday, Moyo -who is out of custody – requested the reporter to hold on before switching of her mobile phone.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated case, a policeman reportedly used his service pistol to rob a taxi driver of his valuables and $9 cash after he had "hired" him to Epworth on the pretext he wanted to take his wife to hospital.

Following his arrest on the same night, Peter Kache (26), who is deployed at the Parliament of Zimbabwe, even tried to shoot the taxi driver, Tawanda Mahachi, in full view of the police officers who had arrested him.

He, however, missed his target and shot the ceiling.

Kache yesterday appeared before magistrate Ms Rumbidzayi Mugwagwa charged with armed rob- bery.

He was remanded in custody to December 12 with instructions to approach the High Court for bail due to the gravity of his offence.

Prosecutor Mr Sebastian Mutizirwa alleged that on December 6 at midnight, Kache - who was clad in his uniform - approached Mahachi outside a hotel at the intersection of Robert Mugabe Road and Rezende Street.

He then hired him from the city centre to Epworth.

It is alleged that Kache lied to Mahachi that he wanted to take his terminally ill wife from Epworth to Parirenyatwa Hospital.

When they got to Saloni Shopping Centre in Epworth, Kache directed Mahachi to turn into Garan'anga Road and ordered him to stop at a house that he said was his.

Kache disembarked from the motor vehicle and asked to use Mahachi's cell- phone to call and advise his wife of his arrival, the court heard.

It is the State's case that Mahachi then offered to escort him to get his wife.

After walking for a short distance, Kache suddenly produced a pistol, cocked it and pointed it at Mahachi before ordering him to surrender all his valuables and cash.

Out of fear, Mahachi gave him his mobile phone and cash amounting to $9 after which he was ordered to vacate the premises and he complied, the court heard.