Gokwe villager allegedly forced into vehicle as Chief Chireya assists murder probe
A villager from Gokwe was found dead at his hut after an alleged assault, as traditional leader Chief Chireya, born Henry Chidzivo, assisted police investigating a murder case in the area.
Police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed that three suspects had been arrested. He said the chief was among those assisting investigators as they worked to establish what happened before the villager’s death.
“I can confirm that three suspects were arrested on allegations of murder and Chief Chireya is among those assisting police with investigations,” said Comm Nyathi.
Accounts from unnamed sources allege that the villager was forced into a vehicle driven by Chireya, who was said to be accompanied by other people whose identities have not been disclosed. The sources said the man was later assaulted and found dead at his hut with serious injuries believed to have resulted from the attack.
The account does not identify the deceased or state when he was taken from his home. Police have not released the names of the three people arrested or provided further details about the circumstances of the death. The reported sequence—from the alleged forced journey to the discovery at the hut—has not been described publicly by investigators in greater detail.
Nyathi said police were continuing their inquiries after the alleged assault that reportedly preceded the death. He said further information would be made public as the investigation progressed.
“We will keep the nation fully informed on the developments as this matter is of clear public interest,” he said.
The chief’s role in the investigation is described by police as assistance to investigators. Police have not publicly set out what investigators have established about the vehicle, who was inside it, or how the villager sustained the injuries.
The case has brought renewed attention to earlier disputes involving Chief Chireya and people living under his traditional authority. In 2021, Andrew Teteni accused the chief’s representatives of taking cattle and other property from his homestead in connection with a traditional court matter. Teteni said four cattle, a scotch cart, two dogs, two tyres, a trek chain, a york and a small sachet of washing powder were taken. He also said his 16-year-old nephew was taken away and left several kilometres from home.
The dispute centred on a case in which Teteni’s teenage son was accused of adultery. Teteni said the property was seized before the matter had been properly resolved and challenged the process. A copy of a traditional court form described in accounts of the dispute listed an order involving cattle and the return of the scotch cart. Teteni said more property had been taken than the court had ordered.
Chireya denied ordering the seizure of the additional goods. He said he had ordered four cattle to be paid and the scotch cart returned, and that he had written to the other party in the adultery dispute telling him not to sell the property while the matter was being reconsidered. The chief said the cattle had already been handed over and that he was not responsible for recovering the remaining items.
Teteni took the matter to the Civil Court in July 2021. The reported account of the case said the court ordered the return of the property. Teteni said at the time that he had not recovered the cattle and several other items, while Chireya disputed responsibility for some of the property listed in the complaint.
The dispute continued into the following year, when Chireya sued Teteni for more than ZW$3 million over allegations he said had damaged his reputation. Chireya said the accusations were false. Teteni said he had filed a response to the suit and had also asked police to investigate the property matter. He said the matter had been referred to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission and that an investigation was under way. No later public outcome of the defamation case or the investigation was identified in the reports reviewed for this article.
There was also a separate fatal attack in Chief Chireya’s area in August 2025. Police said 55-year-old Mardon Dube was killed at Kashiri Village after six men went to his home looking for his son, James. The previous day, James had fought with the men at Chidoma Business Centre and stabbed one of them in the hand, according to the police account. When the group arrived at the family home, James ran away. Police said the six men assaulted and stabbed his father, who died while being taken to hospital.
That 2025 case is separate from the current investigation. Police named six men as suspects in Dube’s killing; the published account did not accuse Chireya of involvement. The present case concerns a different villager, three arrests and the alleged events leading to a death in the chief’s area.
For the current investigation, police have not publicly identified the deceased or the three suspects. They have also not released further details about the alleged assault or the reported journey in the vehicle. Nyathi’s statement remains the public police update: the three arrests have been made, Chireya is assisting investigators, and inquiries are continuing.