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A Zimbabwean village has been struck with tragedy when a pastor, Shamiso Kanyama, died after he was allegedly buried alive on his instructions.

Reports states that Kanyama had asked his followers, 5 members of the same family, to bury him alive so that he could summon more cleansing powers to help cleanse their house of evil spirits.

The members of the family, has now been charged with the murder of the ‘man of God’, as they were the ones who invited the pastor to their house to help cleanse their home, believed to be plagued by mysterious deaths.

According to Zed 24 News, the country’s local newspaper, the accused family members, identified as Leanmore Mutero, Tonderai Muswere, Michael Muchengeti, Manasa Mutero and Nicholas Mutero, have been charged before the High Court in Harare for murder.

“In response to our request to perform a healing ceremony, Kanyama ordered us to dig a grave and bury him alive because that was the way he summoned more healing powers to ward off evil spirits,” they explained.

However, the plan boomeranged, as the pastor, instead of resurrecting as he planned, the men dug up the grave again to find him dead.

The state witness, Father Zvidzai, told the High Court that Kanyama helped to dig his own grave before praying and jumping inside, adding that after Kanyama laid face down in the grave, he ordered his followers to cover him with soil.

“He secured a grave-shaped pit in front of my hut and asked for help to dig the pit. The deceased requested to be buried alive so that he would gain power to drive away the evil forces after resurrecting”, Zvidzai said.

One Joseph Taderera told court that as the men were in the process of filling the grave, he asked them to stop what they were doing as he was scared for the life of the prophet but they snubbed him when the prophet insisted they continued the process of burying him that he would rise from the grave unharmed.

“I warned the men about the danger of their actions, still they disregarded me because the deceased kept telling me that I am disturbing his angels, and urged them to continue filling the grave, saying that he would later come out alive”, Taderera said.

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Gunmen on Monday night invaded Yankamaye community in Tsanyawa Local Government Area of Kano State, killing three residents and forcing many villagers to flee their homes.

Residents said the attackers stormed the community late at night, shooting sporadically and causing panic across the area.

A member of the House of Representatives representing Ghari and Tsanyawa Federal Constituency, Sani Bala, confirmed the incident in a statement shared online, disclosing that three bodies had been recovered after the attack.

“As at the time of this update, three people have been confirmed dead,” the lawmaker stated while expressing concern over the deteriorating security situation in the area.

A resident, Saifullahi Sulaiman Sorodaya, said the attack occurred suddenly, leaving residents with no option but to run for safety.

“The attackers entered the town shooting without stopping, and people had no option but to run for their lives,” he said.

Another resident, Madahuru Isah Ibrahim, disclosed that several persons sustained injuries during the assault and were taken to hospital for treatment.

Following the incident, residents of Yankamaye and neighbouring communities appealed to security agencies to increase surveillance and deploy additional personnel to prevent further attacks.

As of press time, authorities had yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident.

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The Kano State Police Command has successfully recovered and returned a lost bag to its rightful owner.

This was contained in a statement signed by CSP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, Police Public Relations Officer, Kano State Command.

According to the statement, the bag was earlier found by a tricycle operator, Abba Abdullahi Abubakar, who picked it up after a passenger mistakenly left it behind in his tricycle.

The incident happened on November 8, 2025, while he was conveying the passenger from Hotoro to the Naibawa Yan Lemo area of Kano.

Abba made efforts to locate the owner, including making announcements on radio stations. When he could not find the owner, he handed the bag over to the police headquarters in Bompai for safekeeping.

Following a public notice by the police, the owner, Abdullahi Saleh, from Bursali Village in Zaki Local Government Area of Bauchi State,

later came forward to claim it.

Police said the bag, which contained clothing materials and an undisclosed amount of money, was returned to him after he provided proper identification and proof of ownership.

The Commissioner of Police in Kano, Ibrahim Adamu Bakori, praised both the finder and the owner for doing the right thing.

He said, “Such conduct strengthens public trust in the police and promotes the values of honesty, integrity, and community partnership.”

He urged the public to continue to support the police in returning lost property to owners, “as this helps to build trust and improve community-police relations.”