At Norton Magistrates Court Wednesday, the trial of Apostolic sect leader Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa and his seven accomplices resumed.
They are charged with violating both the Children’s Act and the Burial and Cremation Act. They all entered not guilty pleas.
Chokurongerwa (54), Takavengwa Gwenzi (55), Wonder Kabaya (41), Devlodge Katsande (48), Zebedia Sigudu (49), Aaron Chokurongerwa (47), and Shingirai Ngavafume (42), all of whom are residents of Lily Farm in Nyabira, are the defendants. They are accused of abusing children, burying people without permission, and failing to register births and deaths.
They argued in their defense that they did not have to care for the kids and that they were not accountable for them. Furthermore, they asserted—implying that the State was exaggerating—that none of the victims or their parents had filed a police complaint.
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They denied being the only adults on the farm and denied performing any burials without informing the authorities.
Mr. Farai Gatusa from the Births and Deaths Registration Department, the prosecution’s second witness, stated in his testimony that Madzibaba Ishmael hindered their work during their visit to the farm. In addition to discovering 48 children without birth certificates, they also observed graves.
Gatusa claimed the birth certificates the defense had produced were uncertified and issued the same day in June 2024, following their visit in March. This suggests the certificates were obtained with the intention of concealing the offense after the trial started.
In his testimony, the leader of the village, Mr. Nzwanai Musonza, stated that he had occasionally presided over the suspects’ burials and believed they had informed the police. The fact that the leaders of the group had not reported the fatalities astonished him.
