Family buries skull and teeth as man murdered and dismembered

A 12-year-old boy looking for stray cattle on Tuesday stumbled on the remains of a man suspected to have been brutally murdered and his body hidden on a mountain.

The incident which has spread fear among villagers happened at Siloni Village in Lower Gweru.

Villagers said the boy (name withheld) found the body with the lower parts from the waist missing, adding by the time he alerted villagers who arrived at the scene about five hours later, wild animals had feasted on the body and only the head was left.

A family member who declined to be named told Bulawayo24 News that the deceased, Freeman Ncube (24) went missing from home last month.

The family member said Ncube was epileptic and would sometimes go missing from home.

"He disappeared in February but we thought he would come back as he usually did. You can imagine the horror with which we received news that his remains were found on Fushayi Mountain on Tuesday," said the family member.

The family member said it was suspected that Ncube could have been killed for ritual purposes with the body left on the mountain so that predators would eat his flesh, leaving no evidence of his killing. He said the family had set in motion traditional rites that would ensure the killer paid for Ncube's death.

"We buried his head today (Wednesday) but we can assure you whoever killed him will pay. If the person who killed him stays in the village I swear everyone will know they killed Freeman and they will watch the person pay," said the family member.

Acting Midlands police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Ethel Mukwende could not be reached for comment but the headman of the area, Nhlabano confirmed the incident.