adminMashudu Netsianda Senior Reporter
POLICE officers jostled to catch a glimpse of a goblin dumped at Tshabalala Police Station by a family from Bulawayo’s Nketa 7 suburb.
Police officers, who witnessed the drama as it unfolded on Wednesday, said the incident occurred around 8PM.This was shortly after the family in whose house the owner of the goblin rented, had arrived at the station’s charge office with the suitcase containing the suspected goblin.
“I was having my supper when a colleague who was on night duty came rushing to the staff houses and told me there was a goblin at the station. I rushed to the scene,” said a female officer who preferred anonymity.
“When I arrived there was commotion as officers jostled to catch a glimpse of the goblin.”
The police officer said a man, who is a traditional healer, opened the suitcase.
“Some strange creature subsequently jumped out of a bottle which contained thick blood and everyone screamed as they bolted out of the building,” said the police officer.
Said another witness: “Actually I didn’t go near the goblin because I was afraid. I only saw my colleagues coming out of the station running.”
The owner of the suspected tikoloshe only identified as Mange could not be reached for comment as his mobile phone was not reachable.
However, his landlady, Sylvia Dube, 23, said: “It all started on January 4, when Mange came to my house looking for two rooms to rent. I gave him the rooms and he paid $100 promising to pay the remainder of $20 at a later stage.
“What surprised me was that he only brought a black suitcase and a plastic bag containing curtains and disappeared for days. He was hardly seen at home during the day as he would sneak in at night and disappear few hours later, leaving lights on.”
Dube added: “On January 15, a certain man came to my house and warned me that I was keeping a goblin that would kill one of the family members if not removed from the house. I became suspicious and decided to open his (tenant) room using spare keys to investigate. When I opened the suitcase I found a bottle containing thick blood which was simmering.”
Dube said she panicked and phoned Mange so that he could come and collect his strange items.
“When I phoned my tenant he was elusive but later sent an inyanga purporting to be his brother to come and collect the suitcase,” she said.
The inyanga, Eddington Virimayi, 34, who was sent by Mange said: “The owner of the goblin approached me and indicated to me that it was now troubling him. We then went together to the house where he is renting and on arrival, he refused to enter the yard and remained standing a few metres away.”
Virimayi said on opening the suitcase, he discovered the goblin inside the bottle, which was filled with blood.
“When I touched the items inside the bag I trembled as if I had been shocked by electricity and collapsed in the process spilling some of the blood from the container,” he said.
Dube said a neighbour had to assist them ferry Virimayi and the suitcase to Tshabalala Police Station.
“When Virimayi later regained consciousness at the police station, he opened the suitcase and that is when a mysterious creature jumped out and we took to our heels,” she said.
Virimayi said: “I am not new to dealing with goblins. I managed to overpower it during that moment when I had fainted. Such is a common phenomenon when wrestling with goblins.”
According to Virimayi, the creature’s body resembled that of a snail while its head looked like that of a puppy.
“It is a deadly creature and you need to arm yourself with the right ammunition when dealing with goblins. It was very dark and it had a foul smell,” he said.
However, when a Chronicle news crew visited Virimayi’s home at Emakhandeni suburb, he had already burnt the goblin.
Acting Bulawayo police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Bhekimpilo Ndlovu confirmed the incident.
“We are handling a case whereby a 34-year-old Emakhandeni man was brought to one of our police stations by members of the community following witchcraft suspicions. It is, however, too early to conclude that it was indeed an act of witchcraft,” Asst Insp Ndlovu said.
“However, the intelligence that we have gathered suggests that some criminal syndicate could be operating in a similar fashion in an attempt to trick people into parting with their money all in the name of cleansing their homes. We would like to urge people to be extra vigilant as we continue with our investigations.”
The owner of the suspected goblin is still at large.
Online Reporter