Emmanuel Kafe
The suspected Guruve serial killer who was arrested yesterday has confessed he carried out some of the murders that occurred in the district since last month.
The arrest of Anymore Zvitsva (32), following a dramatic, weeks-long manhunt that brought together security forces and local villagers, ended a long, terrifying chapter for the area.
Zvitsva was shot in the left leg as he was flushed out of hiding in a garden, ending a pursuit that had consumed Guruve since December.
He was subdued during a joint operation involving the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and the Zimbabwe National Army, and is now receiving medical treatment under police guard at a local hospital.
In a video that circulated on social media last night, Zvitsva, who was in police custody, is heard confessing to five of the murders.
“I was all by myself; those five are the only people I killed,” he is heard saying, while handcuffed to burglar bars.
“I laughed to myself after I found out that people knew that I was behind the murders.”
For residents, news of his capture spread like a release of breath long held, cautious relief mixed with exhaustion, grief and the painful knowledge that normal life will not return overnight.
Confirming the arrest, national police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the suspect was apprehended yesterday afternoon following sustained intelligence-led operations.
“The Zimbabwe Republic Police confirms the arrest of murder, attempted murder and rape suspect, Anymore Zvitsva (32), in Guruve this afternoon, January 3, 2026,” he said.
“The suspect was shot on the left leg by a joint team from Zimbabwe Republic Police and Zimbabwe National Army while hiding in a garden.
“He is now receiving medical attention at a local hospital.”
Police praised the Guruve community and the wider public for their cooperation and flow of information, which proved crucial to the intensive manhunt that deployed ground patrols, canine units and aerial surveillance across villages, farms and bushland.
“More details on the criminal charges and court appearance will be availed in due course,” Comm Nyathi said.
Zvitsva’s arrest brings to a close one of the darkest periods the district has known in recent years. Across parts of Mashonaland Central, fear reshaped daily life as villagers abandoned their fields, restricted movement after dark and adopted group sleeping arrangements in a bid to stay alive.
The terror deepened after Zvitsva was linked to the brutal killing of five members of the same family at Ona Mapeto Farm in Ward 21 of Guruve District — an attack that stunned the nation.
The victims, a 66-year-old grandmother, her 40-year-old son, a 37-year-old daughter and two grandchildren aged five and two, were attacked at their homestead, a place that should have been a sanctuary.
A neighbour who rushed to the scene after hearing screams reportedly found the son still alive, but hope was short-lived. He later died in hospital, adding to the crushing weight of loss.
Police have also linked Zvitsva to the murders of Pamela Chipangura (39) and her two children, Kudzai and Tawanda Chipangura, in Zimuna Village, killings that sent shockwaves through the district and reinforced the sense that nowhere was safe.
On December 19, the violence escalated further when a 55-year-old woman and a six-month-old infant were killed at Farm 88 in Nyakapupu, Guruve, pushing the death toll in the series of attacks to at least 10 and plunging communities deeper into despair.
Authorities say Zvitsva will be formally charged once he is discharged from hospital, with a comprehensive charge sheet covering multiple counts of murder, attempted murder and rape expected ahead of his court appearance.
Mashonaland Central Minister of Provincial Affairs and Devolution Christopher Magomo said the suspect’s capture brought long-awaited relief to communities traumatised by weeks of uncertainty and grief.
Minister Magomo revealed that at least 19 people were killed, while two others remain missing, during the period of the attacks that gripped parts of Guruve and surrounding areas.
“We were happy and relieved to hear that he was captured just after we were completing our provincial meeting on the issue,” said Minister Magomo said.
“We applaud the security forces and the community.”
As Guruve slowly emerges from fear, the scars remain — traumatised children, broken families and a community that must now learn to trust the night again.
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