Online Reporter
Yeukai Karengezeka-Chisepo
Court Correspondent
A FAITH healer and his wife were yesterday hauled to the Harare Magistrates Court facing allegations of raping a minor.
Gathry Chiredzero (49), his wife Diana Chauke (37) and the complainant’s biological mother (45) — whose name was withheld — appeared before Harare regional magistrate Mr Donald Ndirowei, charged with rape.
They were remanded in custody until June 26 for the commencement of the trial after the State opposed bail.
Chauke is employed by a local pharmacy as a store and medical aide, while the third accused is employed as a maid in Chisipite.
The complainant is a 13-year-old female juvenile.
Prosecutor Mr Blessed Songozo told the court that sometime in January 2026, the complainant was taken by her biological mother to the accused person’s home during the night.
Chiredzero, a known faith healer in the area, was reportedly attending to the complainant’s mentally ill sister.
During the healing session, the accused allegedly demanded that the complainant’s mother provide him with a virgin girl, claiming he needed intimacy to heal the mentally challenged daughter.
The prosecutor said Chauke agreed with her husband’s idea, and even brought a gun, threatening the mother to comply.
According to the State, the complainant’s mother consented to the arrangement out of fear.
The court heard that during the night, Chauke allegedly arranged separate rooms for Chiredzero and the complainant.
The complainant’s mother and the other child were instructed to go to sleep.
It was alleged that Chiredzero then undressed himself and ordered the complainant to undress as well, but she refused.
He was said to have threatened her with a gun, removed her clothes, and raped her, an act the court was told occurred once.
The next day, the complainant was left at the accused person’s home.
During the day, the prosecutor said Chiredzero insisted on being intimate with the complainant again, claiming the mental condition of the patient needed to be fully “solved.”
It was further alleged that Chauke, still acting in common purpose with her husband, insisted the complainant was supposed to comply because her husband was armed.
The State alleged that the complainant complied out of fear and was sexually raped again without protection.
After the alleged assaults, the complainant was said to have cleaned herself.
Chauke allegedly provided her with underwear and clothes to wear.
The prosecutor told the court that Chiredzero then threatened to kill the complainant if she disclosed the matter to anyone.
According to the allegations, the complainant’s mother later came for her in the evening and took her back home, with no action taken against the accused persons.
The matter only came to light on June 7 2026, when the complainant, her mother and siblings were undergoing a healing session with an Apostolic prophet, Shupikai Nyamuda.
The prophet allegedly prophesied about the sexual assault incident, after which the complainant’s mother, accompanied by Nyamuda, reported the matter to the police.
