For several people, the first thing that comes to mind when coming face to face with an unknown man, stark naked, in one’s yard, is that it can be related to witchcraft.

This is exactly what happened to one family at Itsani last weekend. The Mufunwaini family of Itsani outside Thohoyandou received the shock of their lives when their peaceful weekend sleep was disturbed by the arrival of an uninvited guest in the wee hours of the morning. The incident sent shockwaves throughout the village and left the family in a confused state, not knowing what the man wanted in their yard in his naked state.

“This is witchcraft. This man is after our lives. What else can explain this?” said the owner of the house, Mr Petrus Mufunwaini (65), after discovering what he believes to be a witch in his outside kitchen. The man, is alleged to have run away from an initiation school without the permission of the owner some few years ago.

According to tradition, it is regarded a curse from the ancestors if one runs from circumcision school before it is closed and the action is closely related to witchcraft. This has made the community and the family is to conclude that his visit was for witchcraft purposes.

Mufunwaini said he was enjoying his sleep at about 04:30 in the morning when he heard some footsteps in his yard. “The footsteps disturbed us as we had locked all the gates and we were not expecting anybody at that time of the morning,” he said. He said he went outside to investigate and did not notice anything.

“I went to the outside kitchen and was very surprised to find a stark naked man with his ashen body sitting at the fire place. “My gates were still locked and the man could not give a clear explanation as to how he got there and what he was actually doing at that time of the morning,” he said.

“I have never seen anything like this in my life. I just heard of incidents like this from a distance and never thought it would one day come face to face with me,” he said. Mufunwaini said he fails to understand why some people might like to see him dead.” I am well known in this community and I also go an extra mile in helping the community. I had thought all along that these people loved me. What happened here today will leave me with many questions unanswered and not knowing what will happen next,” he said.

Mufunwaini said he was putting everything in the hands of God. “With God everything is possible, and He can stop evil people from achieving their goals,” he said.

His wife, Joyce Mufunwaini, echoed the same sentiments. “We are dead scared and we have only one shelter to run to: God, who conquers all evil.” She said she had hoped that, after locking the gates, the family was safe, and she never expected something like this. “I have heard of these evil people but never thought I would experience it myself,” she said.

She said they had to protect the alleged witch when community members wanted to dispense mob justice on him. “We had to protect him as angry villagers bayed for his blood because we would have been accountable if anything bad happened to him. We do not have to take the law into our own hands,” she said. She said they reported the matter to the police, who came and rescued the man.

Within minutes, a local woman prayer group had gathered at the family and was already praying for the family.

The president of Vhembe Traditional Healers Association, Vho Maine Vho Mbilivhili Neluvhola, said it happens that a person could try to put a spell on a family, only to find that they had strong muti. “In such cases, the perpetrator will fail and will end up being caught or will get sick and die,” he said. He said magic was common amongst African communities but people did not admit it openly. He also confirmed that it was possible for a mentally disturbed person to wander and end up at a wrong place. “This should not be construed as witchcraft,” he said