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Robin Muchetu, Senior Reporter
MR Jeremiah Sibanda (65) of Luveve, in Bulawayo is an unsung hero.
He is the homeowner where the infamous Prosper Bhule, an alleged serial robber and rapist was captured in the early hours of the morning a fortnight ago.
Bhule is notorious for having hoodwinked about 17 women and girls into believing that they had received goods from South Africa that needed to be collected in Gwabalanda.
Once he gained the trust of the women, he lured them from their homes and raped all of them and robbed them of their cellphones and money.
How it started
Mr Sibanda got to know Bhule after he randomly approached him at his home asking to hire a vehicle from him.
“I was cleaning my car outside and he approached me at the gate and said he was looking for a job to drive my Honda fit.
He said he had a driver’s licence and that the previous Honda Fit that he had been driving belonged to a police officer from Luveve Police Station who had been transferred to Tsholotsho.
He said he worked with omalayitsha as a delivery man where he would break the bulk of the parcels from South Africa and deliver using a small vehicle and would cash in R600 a day,” he said.
Mr Sibanda said he asked Bhule how he got to know he owned a Honda Fit and he said he noticed the car while he was still driving the police officer’s vehicle.
Mr Sibanda said he told Bhule he would contact him to finalise the deal to let him use the vehicle to which he agreed.
They also agreed they would be in contact with each other once Mr Sibanda’s car was repaired for a minor fault.
“The following day Bhule called me at about 7am inquiring about the broken fan that I wanted to replace and I told him I had got one and was waiting for my mechanic to repair it and I would update him that evening,” he said.
An encounter with the cops — Mrs Sibanda speaks
After speaking to Bhule at 7am Mr Sibanda retired home from his fields where he met police details at his gate speaking to his wife.
“They came and asked for Betty Sibanda and said they wanted her phone as they wanted something from the phone.
So, unfortunately my sim card was with my daughter who was at school.
Then they asked that we go to the school and I was now worried and asked why they needed that mobile number and I was informed that there was a call that I had received from a person of interest.
“So, after discussing with them I told them that my husband and I had similar mobile numbers and the difference was the last digit.
So, as we were setting up our phones, we somehow swapped lines and my husband took my line, he has been using it since then,” said Mrs Betty Sibanda.
The police details then went through the phone and saw that indeed Bhule had made contact.
Tracking Bhule down
Mr Sibanda was then asked about his relationship with Bhule and he explained how they had met the previous day.
He was then informed that Bhule was a dangerous man who had been on a raping spree. T
he day before Bhule approached Mr Sibanda, he had taken a vehicle belonging to one woman in Emakhandeni and was using it to pirate the Bulawayo-Tsholotsho route, renegading from their previous agreement of delivering goods on behalf of omalayitsha.
Using information from the police, Sibanda was told to contact them once Bhule made contact about the Honda fit he wanted to hire out.
That evening Bhule called using a different mobile number and was informed that the Honda Fit was ready for collection and he said he would get it the following day at 7am.
Mr Sibanda informed the police about the phone call, unbeknown to him, Bhule had raped his 17th victim that afternoon and was using her mobile phone to call.
The capture
The following day police detectives arrived at Mr Sibanda’s house at about 5am and laid an ambush.
Some hid in his house while others were dotted outside.
Bhule, true to his word, arrived at 6.50am and called Mr Sibanda informing him that he was outside the gate.
“He came into the house and I called my wife to meet him and we drew up an ‘agreement’ as per the deal, so I excused my wife to go and look for a book to take down his details.
As soon as my wife stepped out to the bedroom the detectives jumped out and ordered him to lie on the floor with guns pointed at him.
That was how he was captured.
He never resisted at all, he never got the chance to do anything,” explained Mr Sibanda.
Disgruntlement
“However, when this story was announced to the world that the notorious and elusive Bhule had been captured, it was said the detectives laid an ambush and caught Bhule staying at my house.
It was said as if I was harbouring Bhule, a criminal at my house.
I only met him when he came to ask to use my car.
Our friends and family also then had the same feelings that I was interacting with criminals,” he said.
He would like to have his name cleared officially, that he was not involved and did not harbour any criminal.
On the lighter side
Mr Sibanda however, was curious to know if there was a reward or recognition for assisting detectives to catch a dangerous criminal.
“Into ezinjalo azila reward? Ukuthi ngincedise ukubamba isigangi lesi.
I understand that the day he was communicating with me he was on his 16th victim that he raped which is very sad.
He is a dangerous man,” he said.
Speaking on the experience
Mr Sibanda said he braced himself that he was going to do whatever it took to assist the detectives catch Bhule.
He was scared that his car could have been stolen by Bhule if the police had not made contact with him soon enough, so he was ready to see the criminal get arrested.
“I did not know that the detectives were going to come with guns, big guns like that.
I thought it was going to be a simple capture; I was shocked to be honest.
When the detectives cornered him with the big guns in my living room, I was in deep shock together with the children.
We last saw such arms during the war,” said Mrs Sibanda.
She added.
“I was hurt when they asked him about a phone he had taken away from a girl he raped the previous day.
He produced it and gave them, I was touched, ngezwa kuhela njengo mama that a young man born in 1992 was doing such horrible things.”
Mr Sibanda said Bhule indeed looked like a criminal.
“When you look at him you can classify him as a tsotsi but the way he opened up to me and showed me his identity documents I did not think much because I said kids of today don’t take good care of themselves hence the looks.”
The Sibandas said the detectives arrived early in the morning such that the neighbours did not witness the capture and heard of the event in the media and on social media.
However, because of lack of adequate information, some residents have been saying Bhule was captured at the Sibanda’s home as he was residing there in secret.
However, they are not deterred as they felt they did a good job as citizens in helping law enforcers to capture a serial rapist.
@NyembeziMu
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter