By Panashe Divine Karidzagundi
A 47-year-old Beitbridge man has been jailed for 15 effective years for rape and multiple counts of indecent assault involving four young girls.
Fungai Hakuna appeared before Magistrate Charity Maphosa and was found guilty of sexually abusing the minors at Forit Houses in Beitbridge.
The court heard that Hakuna, described as a traditional healer who lived at an unfinished building in the area, committed the offences between 2025 and January 2026.
He was convicted of one count of rape and three counts of indecent assault.
For the rape charge involving a seven-year-old girl, the court sentenced him to 15 years imprisonment.
On the three counts of indecent assault involving girls aged eight, six and five, he was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment.
The sentences will run concurrently bringing the total effective sentence to 15 years.
According to prosecutor Mercy Nyathi, the accused and the victims were neighbours at Forit Houses.
The offences came to light on February 1, 2026, after a community member allegedly saw Hakuna fondling one of the children and alerted the child’s parents.
The child later told an adult that the accused had been touching her breasts while telling her that she was “his child”.
Further inquiries by parents revealed that other children in the neighbourhood had allegedly also been abused by the same man.
One of the girls told her mother that the accused had removed her underwear and had sexual intercourse with her.
The matter was reported to the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) Beitbridge Urban, leading to Hakuna’s arrest.
The four children were taken to Beitbridge District Hospital for medical examinations.
A medical affidavit presented in court indicated that penetration had occurred on one of the girls.