A 61-year-old man from Nqama village outside Beit Bridge was killed, allegedly by three men, who then sliced off some of his body parts and dumped him on a mountain in what is suspected to be a ritual murder, police have said.

The local police spokesperson, Sgt Loveness Mangena, said the incident occurred on Sunday at around 19:00 at Nqama village. The body was found at Ndlome Mountain with the ears and eyes missing, and the suspects had allegedly also skinned the head. The deceased was identified as Kara Sibanda of Nqama village in Esigodini.

The suspects are believed to have fled to South Africa and police have since launched a manhunt. “Our preliminary investigations indicate that on the day, the suspects, Mukhokheli Ncube (30), Mhlanguli Ncube (33) and Jabulani Ndlovu, whose age is not known, went to the victim’s homestead, looking for his son.

“On arrival, they found Sibanda and his wife. The person they were looking for, however, was not there. They  waited for the son to return home,” she said. Mangena said while they were waiting for the victim’s son to arrive, the trio started drinking beer, together with Sibanda.

“They then enticed Sibanda to accompany them to a local business centre, with the understanding that they would buy him more beer, and he agreed. Along the way, after walking for about a kilometre, the suspects allegedly pulled out knives and fatally stabbed Sibanda all over the body, after which they shaved his head before skinning it. They also allegedly removed his ears and eyes, and we suspect it could be for ritual purposes. We are still investigating,” Mangena said.

“The offence came to light when Sibanda did not return home, prompting his wife to become suspicious. She then alerted other villagers. The body was discovered two days later by a local villager who was looking for firewood in the bush and the matter was reported to us,” Mangena said.

The body was taken to a local hospital mortuary, pending a postmortem.