Zimbabwean police have arrested four men accused of desecrating about 380 graves at Restland Memorial Park in Rainham, Harare, between 2015 and 2024.
Police spokesperson Paul Nyathi said Thursday the suspects — Edwin Muronzi, Tinashe Chiguma, 32, Moses Gwanya, 19, and Kudakwashe Humure, 21 — allegedly exhumed human remains to resell burial plots.
The arrests followed a report by Chiguma, who told police he had been experiencing visions of the dead. He implicated his employer, Muronzi, and others in the alleged scheme, Nyathi said.
Investigators found that Muronzi hired grave diggers, paying them $15 to $20 per grave, to remove remains and artifacts buried with the dead. The remains were reportedly packed into cement bags and dumped in a trench or dam behind the cemetery, Nyathi said. The disturbed graves were then cleaned and resold to unsuspecting families for new burials.
Police forensic teams are working to identify the tampered graves and recover remains. Authorities are also searching for three other suspects, identified as Kevy, Shumba, and Dread, who remain at large.
Nyathi has urged anyone with information to contact the National Complaints Desk on (0242) 703631, WhatsApp 0712800197, or report at any nearest police station.
