Police in Rusape are holding a 48-year old woman who reportedly stole two babies in hospital in 2013 and 2015.
Reports say the woman, Enita Marumani of Madhibhu Village under Chief Chiduku in Rusape, who could not conceive stole the babies and brought them up as her own.
She was arrested nine years latter, on Monday.
As Chipinge Times reported, the first baby-thieving incident happened in 2013 when Marumani allegedly lied to her husband Noel Gutu that she was pregnant and had given birth at Vengere Clinic in Rusape and she brought a baby boy home.
On the second incident on June 2, 2015, and using the same modus operandi, Marumani had indicated to Gutu that she was pregnant in 2014 and brought another baby boy home.
Confirming the case, Manicaland provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Nobert Muzondo revealed that Marumani’s case came to light after she refused to go to Vengere Clinic to collect birth records so that birth certificates could be obtained for the boys.
This resulted in police interrogations to ascertain the validity of the claims that the two boys were indeed Marumani’s.
According to Inspector Muzondo, Marumani disclosed during the interrogations that she had stolen the two babies in Harare.
Inspector Muzondo said in the first incident, Marumani met an unidentified woman in 2013 by Harare Central Hospital gate and offered to assist her to carry her three months old baby boy as she was carrying a lot of luggage.
The woman agreed to have her carry the baby.
The two women boarded a commuter omnibus to Seke enroute to Chitungwiza but when they arrived, Marumani had disappeared with the baby.
She then took the baby to her husband Noel Gutu and told him she had given birth.
They named the child Tawanda.
The second incident happened on June 2, 2015 when Marumani visited her relative in Glen View, Harare, Chipinge Times reported.
Reports say she then told her relative that she wanted to visit another relative in Waterfalls.
While she was waiting for lifts, an unidentified vendor who was selling brooms asked Marumani to hold her six weeks baby by the name Joseph so that she fixes her brooms.
Subsequently, Marumani disappeared with the baby and went back to her husband in Rusape, telling him that she had given birth.
According to ChipingeTimes, Marumani would always profess ignorance whenever Gutu asked about the birth records so that they can acquire birth certificates for the children.
Smelling a rat, Gutu ended up reporting the matter to the police that his wife is refusing to collect birth records from Vengere Clinic.
When investigations were done at Vengere Clinic, it was discovered that there were no records pointing to Marumani giving birth at the medical facility.
Under-pressure, Marumani ended up confessing that she had stolen the two boys in Harare in 2013 and 2015.
She was then arrested for kidnapping.
Meanwhile, the two boys were taken to the social welfare as police are waiting to locate their biological parents.
Zwnews
