Six men from Joga Village in Hurungwe, Mashonaland West Province, have been convicted and sentenced for demolishing a house following a dispute over ancestral land and spiritual claims.
The men, Kingrose Madyara (58), Wilson Kamudungwe (58), Kavande Norman (50), Progress Madyara (35), Tapiwa Chipazaure (35) and Liberty Chipazaure (30), were sentenced at the Karoi Magistrates’ Court after being found guilty of destroying a two-roomed house belonging to the complainant.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the incident occurred in April 2025, when the six men allegedly ganged up and demolished the house using their bare hands.
The dispute began in 2023 after the village head allocated land to the complainant. The complainant claimed that he was possessed by the spirit of Goremusandu, a well-known spirit medium (Mhondoro), and therefore had a right to the ancestral land.
However, the six accused rejected the claim, dismissing it as a “scam”, and took the law into their own hands by destroying the house.
The court sentenced each of the offenders to 10 months’ imprisonment, of which three months were suspended for five years. A further month was suspended on condition that the accused pay restitution to the complainant.
The remaining six months were suspended on condition that each offender completes 210 hours of community service.
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