Bulawayo Rehab Centre Owner Sought Over Sexual Abuse Of Up To 30 Patients

The owner of a privately run rehabilitation centre in Bulawayo allegedly raped and abused up to 30 people at his facility in Emganwini.

Norris Pikanegore, 46, who runs Habits Experts Rehab Centre, is still at large. Police suspect that he may have fled across the border into Zambia.

The allegations came to light after a female patient escaped a late-night ordeal and raised the alarm. She said she was taken from the centre to the Pelandaba suburb at midnight under suspicious circumstances, but managed to flee and alert her family.

Her account was first shared on veteran journalist Ezra Tshisa Sibanda’s Facebook page, prompting more than 30 other people to come forward with similar reports.

In a statement, Assistant Inspector Thandekile Ndlovu, the Bulawayo deputy provincial police spokesperson, confirmed that investigators are handling multiple cases of indecent assault, rape, and assault involving complainants aged between 17 and 47.

“On different occasions during the month of April 2026, the accused person would indecently assault the complainants, and further assault others using a button stick and threaten them not to disclose the ordeal to anyone,” Ndlovu said. “We appeal to members of the public with information that may lead to the arrest of the accused person to contact ZRP Nkulumane on 0292-496756 or any nearest police station.”

Survivors have described severe abuse at the centre, saying Pikanegore controlled patients through violence and indecent assault.

“He would wake us up around 2 AM while we were sleeping, beat us, and force us to twerk and dance for him while we were naked. Afterwards, he would call one or two girls to his room,” one teenage girl told Sibanda.

The girl’s parents had checked her into the centre over behavioural concerns.

Male patients were also abused. One young man described a pattern of voyeuristic abuse, saying: “[Pikanegore] would call all the boys, demand we take off our pants, then force us to masturbate while he watched.”

After the first reports emerged, police raided the Emganwini facility but found it deserted. Pikanegore had allegedly moved patients to a house in Cowdray Park in an attempt to evade detection.

A joint operation by Nkulumane and Cowdray Park police later tracked down 21 patients crammed into the suburban home.

Statements were recorded on site, and many were reunited with their families, although police are still trying to trace relatives for some patients who had no contact details.

The facility is also accused of operating as a sham rehabilitation centre. It allegedly had no qualified medical or mental health professionals, and drugs and alcohol were reportedly accessible on the premises despite its stated mission to treat addiction.

More: ZimLive