The suspected Guruve serial killer arrested on Friday has confessed to carrying out some of the murders that have haunted the district since December, ending a tense, fear-filled chapter for communities across Mashonaland Central.
Anymore Zvitsva (32) was captured after a dramatic, weeks-long manhunt that united security forces and local villagers in a rare show of solidarity. He was shot in the left leg as police and army teams forced him out of hiding in a garden, bringing an exhausting pursuit to a close.
The joint operation — involving the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) — subdued the suspect, who is now receiving medical treatment under guard at a local hospital.
A video that circulated on social media last night showed Zvitsva, handcuffed to burglar bars, confessing to five murders.
“I was all by myself; those five are the only people I killed,” he said.
“I laughed to myself after I found out that people knew that I was behind the murders.”
For many residents, news of his arrest felt like a long-awaited exhale — a mix of relief, fatigue and the heavy realisation that healing will take time.
Confirming the arrest, national police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi commended the intelligence-led operations that tracked the suspect for weeks.
“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.
He added that the suspect was shot while attempting to evade capture.
“He is now receiving medical attention at a local hospital.”
Police applauded the Guruve community and the wider public for their steady flow of information, which proved crucial as teams deployed ground patrols, canine units and aerial surveillance across farms, forests and villages.
Commissioner Nyathi said full details on the criminal charges and court appearance will be released in due course.
Zvitsva’s arrest closes one of the darkest periods the district has endured in recent years. Since early December, fear transformed daily life — villagers abandoned fields, avoided night travel and adopted group sleeping arrangements in desperate attempts to stay alive.
The nightmare deepened when he was linked to the mass murder of five members of the same family at Ona Mapeto Farm in Ward 21. A 66-year-old grandmother, her 40-year-old son, her 37-year-old daughter and two grandchildren aged five and two were brutally attacked in their own home, a place meant to offer safety. The son briefly survived but later died in hospital.
Police also connected Zvitsva to the murders of Pamela Chipangura (39) and her children, Kudzai and Tawanda, in Zimuna Village — killings that sent shockwaves through the area and reinforced the sense of vulnerability.
The violence escalated further on December 19 when a 55-year-old woman and a six-month-old infant were murdered at Farm 88 in Nyakapupu, pushing the confirmed death toll to at least 10.
Authorities say a comprehensive charge sheet covering murder, attempted murder and rape will be finalised once the suspect is discharged from hospital.
Mashonaland Central Minister of Provincial Affairs and Devolution Christopher Magomo said the arrest provided long-awaited relief to communities traumatised by weeks of horror. He noted that at least 19 people were killed, while two others remain missing.
“We were happy and relieved to hear that he was captured just after we were completing our provincial meeting on the issue,” Minister Magomo said. “We applaud the security forces and the community.”
As Guruve cautiously returns to normalcy, the wounds remain raw — traumatised children, shattered families and a community struggling to trust the night again.
