UPDATE: David Livingstone Primary Kids Found

Approximately 22 students from David Livingstone Primary School who were reported kidnapped have been found. It turns out that the driver of the school van, Samuel Honde (60), drove along the Harare-Mutare Road until the van ran out of fuel. The van was found in Macheke, which is about 91 km from Harare. An official from the school narrated:

Pane that Nissan Caravan yeWhite inotakura vana vekuDavid Livingstone indoDhiraivhiwa naSekuru Honde. Pavaenda kunotakura vana masikati kuma1, Sekuru vangotakura vana ndobva vasimuka pachikoro ndobva vangobuda vakananga naMutare road. Hatizivi kuti sekuru va vavhiringidzika sei kana kuti kurasika kwenjere here kana kuti chii chaitika. Saka sekuru vabva vangorova mota vakadaro kusvikira mota yapera dhiziri yava paMacheke. Saka kubva masikati ese pataona vana vasina kusvika kudzimba vanhu vanga vachingotsvaga vachiedza kufonera sekuru vachitryer kutsvaga kombi iya kuti ko yafamba sei yadii. Foni yesekuru yanga isingaiti pamwe pacho yanga ichidairwa nevana vachingoti sekutu vari kuDriver Sekuru vari kudriver. Saka pazenge papera mota iya dhiziri manje vana manje varohwa nenzara kwasviba, kuma half 6 to 7 ikoko vana vaakuchema vakangozara kombi iri paside peRoad payaperera dhiziri paMacheke apa ndopapfuura nemunhu apfuura nepo akazviona akazobvuta phone yasekuru payazofonwa. Ndiye munhu azotizivisa kuti kombi iyoyo iri kuno kuMacheke yakangopaka nevana vari kungochema, driver haana zvaari kutaura tatryer kutaura naye ari kuratidza kuti haasi kukwanisa kutaura. Saka azonozivisawo mapurisa, mapurisa ndiwo azotora mota iya akayiisa paPolice Station paMacheke. Saka ndokutozomhanya kwatazoitawo kuti tichitanga kutevera vana iko kuno kuMacheke.

LOOSELY TRANSLATED: [There is a white van that David Livingstone Primary School uses to transport their students. The driver’s name is Sekuru Honde. On Thursday, January 18, 2024, around 1 pm, he picked up the kids, left the school and drove along Harare-Mutare Road. We’re not sure what happened, but he might have had a mental problem or something else. He kept driving until the van ran out of fuel. In the afternoon, when the students didn’t come home, we started searching for Sekuru Honde and the van. We couldn’t reach him on his phone, and sometimes the students answered, saying, “Sekuru is driving.” When the fuel ran out, he parked the van on the side of the road, and the hungry kids started crying. Around 6:30 – 7 pm, a person passing by found Sekuru Honde’s phone and was the one who informed us that the van was in Macheke. The passerby notified the police, who took the van to Macheke Police Station. That’s when we went to Macheke to bring back the kids.]

The pupils were subsequently taken to Marondera Hospital for a thorough medical examination to address any physical or emotional harm they may have experienced. A police report of the incident read:

Honde was contracted by parents to ferry learners to and from David Livingstone Primary School from their respective residencies around Harare since 2016.

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Police interrogated the driver on where he was heading and he stated that he was going to Kuwadzana Extension in Harare. He was arrested for kidnapping and escorted to Macheke Police Station.

Next of kins of the children were advised and the pupils were ferried to Marondera Provincial Hospital for medical examination.

When the responding officers arrived, they discovered 25 children inside the van. There were 14 girls and 11 boys, all between the ages of 4 and 8. The driver of the van, Samuel Honde, who is 60 years old and resides at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Kuwadzana Extension, will soon be appearing in court.

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