The provincial commissioner of police, Lt-Gen Simon Mpembe, assured the family of the missing Theophilus Tshivhi that the police will not rest until the ones who kidnapped the boy have been caught. He visited Madombidzha village last Thursday and spoke to the family members.

Three traditional healers and two other men were arrested in January this year on suspicion that they had been involved in the kidnapping of the 11-year-old boy. They were later released after the director of public prosecutions sited a lack of evidence in the case against them. Despite the fact that it has been two months now since the case had been dropped, Mpembe believes that this case can still be re-investigated.

Mpembe told the Tshivhi family that he had already handed the docket to the provincial specialised unit for investigation. "We have established a specialised unit that deals with matters of this nature and ritual killing cases around the province. We will work very hard to ensure that the perpetrators are arrested," he said. The unit was established on 8 May.

Theophilus had gone missing at Maname in Nzhelele where he went with his neighbour, Ms Elizabeth Ramarelela (60) who is a traditional healer, her husband Johannes (69), Mr Sello Tlhaoele (21) and two other traditional healers, Ms Alilali Ndou (81) and Mr Ntaku Ndou (32). The boy joined them when they collected traditional herbs and plants in the area. Despite the fact that the accused had taken the boy with them without the family's consent, the director of public prosecutions shocked members of the community when he cited a lack of evidence in the case.

Mpembe said that he would leave no stone unturned to have the case solved. "We are here to support the family. We want to assure the family that we are not going to give up on this matter. We suspect that this might a ritual killing," he said.

The father of the boy, Mr Takalani Mabusha, said that the family had already lost trust in both the police and the justice department. "However, the provincial commissioner's visits brought hope to the family. This is really affecting us as a family, especially since we do not know what exactly happened to my son," he said.

The boy's grandmother, Ms Margaret Tshivhi, said that the matter had traumatised 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," she added. The family told the provincial commissioner that they would be happy if they could find the boy, dead or alive.

The provincial commissioner also visited the family of a 53-year-old man who had allegedly raped his daughters, aged 15 and 19, at Nzhelele. The man allegedly fathered two children with one of the daughters as a result of the alleged rape, while the other one hadlost her baby immediately after birth.

The man was arrested in 2010, but was only sentenced to 30 days' imprisonment and a fine of R500. The case was then changed from rape to assault. The suspect will appear in court again on 20 September. Mpembe visited the family at Ha-Mandiwana in Nzhelele as a way of showing support.