Chronicle Editor
Michael Magoronga, Midlands Correspondent
A sombre atmosphere engulfed the Stone Clair community in Redcliff following the murder of six people after an apostolic church sect all-night vigil early on Saturday morning.
Thubelihle Khoshow (26) went berserk and killed six people, who included three minors and left four others for dead.
Khoshow’s uncle, Mr Gift Ngwenya gave a gory account of the grisly murders.
“He started behaving violently the previous day and we decided to take him to church as we sought for a solution. But during the church service at around 3am, all hell broke loose. He became so violent he would break tree branches and uproot small trees. It was so scary that everyone ran away due to the excessive power and violence he displayed,” said Mr Ngwenya.
From the church shrine, Khoshow went to his house and did not find his wife and child.
“We had taken his wife and child to my place because we feared for their lives. He started destroying property and thereafter went to his wife’s young sister’s place where he found her children Michelle (8) and Lucky (4) sleeping and struck them with an axe, killing them on the spot,” Mr Ngwenya said.
From there he jumped over a precast wall into the neighbour’s yard and attacked the house owner, a police officer, with a spear.
He went to another house a few metres away and knocked. When the house owner Mr Xolani Sikwili (33) opened, he axed him and his seven-month-old baby Lerato Sikwili to death.
Mr Sikwili’s wife escaped with head injuries and is battling for life in hospital.
Mr Xolani’s brother, Mr Nqobani Sikwili, said two other children were with the maid in the house and only survived probably because Khoshow wasn’t aware of their presence.
Khoshow then headed back home where he found Meggie Nkiwane (85) and her daughter Lina Moyo (56) sleeping and attacked them with a hoe, killing them instantly.
Moyo’s son, a police officer based in Harare, said he was still in shock.
Police were called and they arrested Khoshow.
Redcliff Mayor Cllr Clayton Masiyatsva said the community was still in shock.
“We are still in shock. This is not easy to comprehend, but as council we are doing all we can to assist the bereaved and those affected. We are offering free graves to the families that intend to bury their loved ones in Redcliff. We are also giving food hampers to assist at the funeral wake as they await postmortem results,” Cllr Masiyatsva said.
He also said a cleansing ceremony is also on the cards because the rate of murders in the Kwekwe dormitory town is becoming scary.
Bongani Ndlovu