Online Reporter
Guest Writer
PLUMTREE women ululated, wept and hugged one another this week as the man they feared most, Mike “Predator” Mathe (37), was finally caged for 20 years.
https://www.heraldonline.co.zw/comment-courage-and-justice-crush-the-plumtree-predator/
For years, Mathe walked the streets of Plumtree like an untouchable kingpin. A feared businessman with deep pockets and dangerous connections, he allegedly preyed on women, from employees and lovers to minors, while openly bragging that police could never touch him.
Some victims were too terrified to report him. Others who tried were allegedly intimidated into silence, their cases mysteriously collapsing, while Mathe continued to boast that he was untouchable.
On 29 August 2025, his reign of terror finally crumbled. Plumtree Magistrate Dambudzo Malunga handed him a 20-year sentence for a brutal attack on one of his female employees, proving once and for all that no predator is above the law.
Court records reveal the chilling details of that attack.
On 16 October 2024, the married businessman Mathe, arrived at his victim’s home late at night and ordered her into his vehicle. In the back seat sat three of his employees, silent witnesses to the nightmare that would follow.
He drove to a dark, isolated spot along Solwezi-Macingwana Road and forced the terrified woman out of the car. Marching her to a nearby water tank, he ordered her to kneel inside the freezing water, which rose above her chest.
When she pleaded for mercy and told him she was epileptic, Mathe snapped. He grabbed her by the neck and pushed her head under the water, holding her there for nearly two minutes as she thrashed and gasped for air. He repeated the dunking several times until she slipped into unconsciousness.
Barely alive, the woman was dragged back to the car and taken home to change her wet clothes. Ten minutes later, Mathe forced her to return to the vehicle.
He drove her to his house in Mathendele suburb, locked the door, and began groping and kissing her as she lay weak and disoriented from the near-drowning.
Mathe then raped her and, at dawn, coldly ordered her to report for duty at 6AM as though nothing had happened.
The case only came to light after a courageous tip-off to police, who arrested him before he could strike again.
This conviction is just one part of Mathe’s dark history. Earlier this year, he and rogue cop Thembani Mukanyani made headlines in the shocking “Judas Cop” case.
Mukanyani is accused of snatching a woman from protective custody at the police Victim Friendly Unit and handing her to Mathe. The woman had reported Mathe for rape at Plumtree Police Station.
Mathe allegedly smuggled the victim across the border to Botswana, where he killed her. That case is still before the courts, with both men remanded in custody.
Mathe is also facing charges of sexually exploiting a minor, who worked at one of his shops between June 2024 and March 2025. In another pending case before the courts, he is accused of beating a woman, tying her with handcuffs, and forcing her underwater while stepping on her back.
For years, victims withdrew complaints out of fear or were pressured into silence. Some residents even believed Mathe’s chilling claims that he had powerful friends who would always protect him.
Police and court officials say his 20-year sentence is a game-changer and are urging silent victims to come forward now that the predator has been caged.
“This man terrorised women across Plumtree and beyond. He silenced many through fear. We want to assure anyone he has harmed that the law will protect you. It is safe to speak now,” said a senior police source outside the courthouse.
Outside the courtroom, women ululated and celebrated. Some hugged one another, while others cried openly.
“Finally, we are free. He can never hurt us again,” said one emotional woman.
Officials believe there are many more victims still living in silence.
“This is just the beginning,” said a court official. “We urge every woman he has hurt to step forward. Your testimony can help ensure he never harms anyone again. The monster has been caged. Justice is here.”
For Plumtree’s women, the verdict is not just justice for one victim. It is the first step in ending years of fear and proving that courage can defeat even the most powerful predator.
