Online Reporter
Tendai Gukutikwa
Weekender Reporter
THE alleged spirit of a late illegal diamond panner is said to be demanding the return of his luxury Range Rover and undisclosed sums of money, reportedly confiscated by his former best friend shortly after his death.
The spirit is believed to be that of Brighton Sithole, who died in 2024 in South Africa, where he had made a fortune through illegal diamond panning.
According to claims, after Sithole’s passing, his close associate, Namatai Mhlanga, collected the car keys and ownership documents from Sithole’s wife, paid her off, and swore her to secrecy.
The matter was brought before Chief Mutasa’s community court recently after Lawrence Sithole accused his aunt, Susan Muriri, of killing his brother, and Mhlanga of seizing Brighton’s vehicle and cash.
Brighton, who had lived a flamboyant lifestyle during the peak of his diamond dealings, had reportedly entrusted Mhlanga with large sums of money for safekeeping while he continued operations in the diamond fields.
Lawrence testified that Brighton left Zimbabwe for South Africa in 2006, where he prospered in the diamond trade.
He often brought Muriri’s sons to work alongside him in the mines.
However, Brighton’s spirit is now said to be manifesting through a medium, accusing Muriri of orchestrating his death out of jealousy, as her children were not prospering as much as he was.
“We now know all this because Brighton’s spirit is manifesting through someone, claiming that Muriri killed him, and that Mhlanga took his car and cash after his death. The spirit insists that Muriri’s jealousy drove her to commit the act, and it demands that the Range Rover and money be recovered,” Lawrence told the court.
Drama unfolded during the proceedings when a woman, said to be possessed by Brighton’s spirit, broke down in tears before speaking in a voice relatives claimed resembled the deceased.
Through her, Brighton allegedly accused Muriri of using rituals to end his life, driven by envy of his success compared to her own children working in the mines.
“Her evil spirit sucked my blood. Zvikomborero, Taurai and their mother, Muriri killed me. Muriri asked me why I had bought a car without a house. She swore that I would not come to Zimbabwe with that car and for sure, I never crossed back into the country with the car, I died shortly afterwards,” the spirit declared.
The spirit further accused Mhlanga of confiscating his Range Rover and keeping the money that had been entrusted to him.
It was alleged that Mhlanga bribed Brighton’s wife so that she would remain silent about the missing assets.
Brighton’s widow, Memory Chiwanza dismissed claims that she was bribed. She claimed that the money she received from Mhlanga was just for condolences (chema).
Asked on where her late husband’s car was, she said she did not know as they left it in South Africa in 2024 when they came to Zimbabwe to bury her husband.
“I never went back there and as we speak, a lot of property has been disposed of by family members in South Africa,” he said.
However, Mhlanga was not present in court and was said to be in default.
His absence meant that the allegations against him could not be immediately addressed.
Muriri, who was present during the proceedings, dismissed the accusations, insisting that she had no hand in Brighton’s death.
“I did not kill him. Brighton had fights with other illegal diamond panners in South Africa. He was a diamond panner and he was bewitched there. It is said that he was pompous and would challenge people with his Range Rover, saying that it was a big car,” she said.
Muriri suggested that Brighton’s lifestyle and alleged arrogance might have provoked rivals in the highly competitive and often violent world of illegal diamond mining.
She maintained that any misfortune that befell him occurred in South Africa and not through rituals at home.
“I was never jealousy of him and I never called to tell him that he would not drive that car in Zimbabwe as it is being alleged. These are all lies against me. He was working well with my children and I took him as my own child too because he was my sister’s child,” she said.
Chief Mutasa, after listening to submissions from both sides, did not issue a definitive ruling on the allegations of ritual killing or theft.
Instead, he directed the family to seek spiritual consultation to establish the truth behind Brighton’s death.
He urged relatives to work together in uncovering what may have happened and to resolve the matter peacefully.
“This is a sensitive issue that involves the spirit of the deceased. The family must consult spiritually to ascertain who indeed killed Brighton and why. His spirit needs appeasement if indeed he was killed,” ruled Chief Mutasa.
He further stressed the importance of unity within families, and cautioned against rushing to conclusions without thorough consultations.
Chief Mutasa said he would deal with the matter of the Range Rover and money when Mhlanga appears in court.
He ordered that Mhlanga be summoned so that he appears in court and answer to the allegations that are being levelled against him.
