A traditional healer (sangoma) allegedly took an 11-year-old boy of Madombidzha without his parents' consent to a bush in Nzhelele where she went to collect traditional medicine. Now the 60-year-old sangoma claims that the boy, Theophilus Tshivhi, had mysteriously disappeared in the bush.

The incident happened last Tuesday (17th), when the traditional healer, Mrs Elizabeth Ramaremela, and her 69-year-old husband, Johannes, decided to go to Maname village in the Nzhelele area to collect traditional plants and herbs. Mrs Ramaremela's two grandchildren accompanied them, as well as a friend from Johannesburg, the 21-year-old Sello Tlhaoele (21). The young Theophilus, whose family live next door to the Ramaremela's, joined them for the trip. Theophilus used to visit the Ramaremela family often to play with other children his age.

According to the police report, Ramaremela claims that the boy had just vanished while they were in the bush. The three, who were joined by two other traditional healers from Maname, went to the Siloam police station the following day and opened a file of a missing person. This was before they even notified the family about the boy's disappearance.

The news came as a shock to Theophilus's family, who had been looking for him at home. The family then opened a case of abduction against the traditional healer and the people who accompanied her. The police have since arrested the suspects and charged them with kidnapping.

The spokesperson for the Siloam police, W/O Edward Tharaga, confirmed the incident. According to him, the suspects were arrested last week. "Ramaremela and the two other traditional healers, however, had promised that the boy would return last Friday, which did not happen," he said.

He added that the police had opened a case of kidnapping and that their investigations were still continuing.  Ramaremela is a resident of Madombidzha, whereas the other two sangomas are residents of Maname.

According to Tharaga, the case was transferred to the Tshilwavhusiku police station. The suspects briefly appeared before the Tshilwavhusiku Magistrate's Court on Tuesday and the case was postponed to 3 February for a bail application.

Ms Margaret Tshivhi, grandmother of the young boy who disappeared, said the matter had traumatized everybody in the family. "We need answers about my grandson's whereabouts. They had the nerve to take him without the family's consent and now they claim he disappeared. It really does not make sense. They must bring him back," said an angry Tshivhi. She added that the suspects had slept over at Maname with her nephew, without even informing her about their plans.

Angry residents from Madombidzha have applied to stage a formal protest outside the Tshilwavhusiku Magistrate's Court when the three, Ramaremela, Tlhaoele and her husband Johannes, will appear in court. The police have also had to monitor the situation closely, as residents threatened to burn down the houses of the accused.