Undressed 'witch' caught at dawn

A SUSPECTED witch brought pandemonium in the leafy suburb of Belvedere when he was found stark undressed at a house opposite Harare Institute of Technology in the early hours of yesterday morning with suspected tools of the trade.

A witness, Tinashe Shonhiwa, said the suspect was caught in their family yard undressed before he was taken for questioning by the police.

"Around 4am, we heard our alarm ringing and we woke up only to find a undressed man outside the house. At first we thought he was a thief masquerading as a mad man so we chased him from the yard. He came back later so we decided to call in the police for assistance," said Shonhiwa.

He said the unidentified man told the police officers that he hails from Nyamaropa village in Nyanga.

The man claimed to be on a witchcraft mission in Harare, but could not progress for unknown reasons.

"He seemed normal and the police said they are treating him as such. He did not show any sign of mental illness, as he obliged to every order given by the police. When we returned for the second time, he was picking up empty bottles," Shonhiwa said.

Witchcraft is outlawed in Zimbabwe, but it has proved to be difficult to prosecute such cases.