A BULAWAYO man has been jailed for four years after he kidnapped a three-year-old girl and confessed in court that he wanted to rape her for ritual purposes.
Tawanda Maronze (23) was arraigned before the Western Commonage Magistrates Court, where he pleaded guilty to attempted rape and kidnapping charges.
Maronze told the court that he wanted to rape the girl following what he had been instructed by a traditional healer.
The court also heard that Maronze had taken the three-year-old girl from her place of residence to a bushy area 5km from her home.
In a statement this week, the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe said Maronze was intercepted by the girl’s aunt who was driving along Solusi Road in the company of her friends.
When the girl’s aunt saw Maronze carrying the little girl, she and her friends confronted him before making a police report.
