Scores of police officers, armed with guns, tear smoke, and accompanied by sniffer dogs, descended on Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa’s farm in Nyabira in the early hours of Tuesday morning leading to his arrest.
As reported by H-Metro, Madzibaba Ishmael’s compound is home to more than 1 000 people who are believed to be members of his cult, most of whom are allegedly being abused.
The residents of the compound were awakened at around 4 AM and led the police officers to Madzibaba Ishmael’s shrine.
They were interviewed about concerns that have been raised about the captivity at the compound.
Those who live at the compound describe it as the Biblical Promised Land.
The police officers were accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Nyabira Rural District Council, Registrar General’s Office and the Department of Social Welfare.
It was established that all the children at the compound did not have birth certificates and did not go to school because they were not allowed to do so.
The women said they had never been subjected to any form of abuse during interviews with Health, Victim Friendly Unit and Social Welfare officials.
Most of Madzibaba Ishmael’s followers dismissed claims they were living in captivity, saying they voluntarily followed their leader.
Madzibaba Ishmael has previously served jail time for attacking police officers. He said:
We do not attack people as reported by people who are fighting us. Our children, as well as our wives, are not comfortable seeing people holding guns.
Musatye zvenyu nezvakaitika gore riya kuBudiriro. Our angels are the ones who fought some of your officers, it was not us.
We preach peace here and we are a peaceful church. We want to slaughter a cow so that you eat while viewing our projects being carried out by our men for a living.
The team was led to a cemetery where shallow graves were dug around an anthill.
Madzibaba Ishmael said he was not aware of women’s and children’s rights being violated.
He was taken to Nyabira Police Station and later to Norton Police Station where he was detained together with four other members of his church.
In 2015, Madzibaba Ishmael was sentenced to a five-year jail term for leading an attack on police officers, journalists and members of the Archbishop Johannes Ndanga-led Apostolic Christian Council of Zimbabwe at his Budiriro shrine in 2014.
Archbishop Ndanga wanted to close down Madzibaba Ishmael’s sect over allegations of abuse of women and children by the latter’s followers.
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