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Prosper Dembedza Court Reporter
A Harare man is in the habit of locking his asthmatic 78-year-old sister in the house and spraying the rooms with pepper spray as punishment for being a witch, the Civil Court heard last Friday. Irene Chitima claimed John Chiza was chasing her out of their late parents’ house.

Chitima was seeking a protection order against Chiza whom she accused of burning herbs in the house to choke her. “He sprays the entire house with pepper spray at night and locks me inside accusing me of being a witch and a prostitute,” she said. Chitima told magistrate Ms Babra Mateko that she had been under such abuse since 2012 when Chiza came back from America.

“He uprooted all my maize and sunflowers that I had planted in my garden. I am 78-years-old with a heart problem and these sprays cause me a lot of discomfort,” said Chitima. Chitima pleaded with Ms Mateko to grant her application saying she was sick and tired of living in hell.

Ms Mateko granted the order in default which barred Chiza from physically or verbally abusing Chitima, as he did not turn up at court.