On a warm Monday morning, Kudzai Brighton Tembo, a 23-year-old prisoner, melted into fields of green corn and yellow bananas at Chawagona Habana, a prison in Mashonaland Central where no one has been able to escape in years.
On the day of the escape he was working in the fields, unrestrained with only one prison officer guarding him and four others, who were toiling outside enjoying the sun, far from the prison walls.
As part of their rehabilitation programme, prisoners work in the fields as the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS) prepares them for re-admission into society after paying the price for their crime.
This system aims to reduce recidivism and improve prisoners’ behaviour, skills, mental health and social functioning.
But Tembo chose to squander that goodwill, and withdrew
Tembo, who was wearing a black T-shirt, is suspected to have slipped away around 10am, a time when the sun was shining and fading in the lush green farms.
He must have taken off his shirt and crawled into the plants, which were now green and lush due to the rain.
Police launched a manhunt for Tembo, who was serving a five-year prison sentence for unlawful entry and robbery charges and was eligible for release in April 2026.
Prison officers first searched the area but failed to locate him before handing the matter over to police.
A senior officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tembo was of average height, light-skinned and spoke with a Manica accent.
On the day of his escape, some people saw him naked except for shorts. They kicked him out assuming he might be a mentally disabled person.
Police believe he returned to his home in the Galiva area of Bindura, where his close friends and a relative concealed his whereabouts or helped him escape.
He was jailed last year after being found guilty of unlawful entry and theft. “We urge people to report people who return from prison in unclear circumstances.”
“We lock up criminals to protect members of the public. Our job is to rehabilitate them and equip them with skills so that they are reintegrated back into society as better and more transformed citizens.
Often, prisoners are not satisfied with prison conditions and some may consider escaping.
This is the first incident to occur at Chawagona Habana prison in recent years, but one incident has been reported at Kingston Prison Farm in Mashonaland Central.
The senior officer appealed to members of the public with information about Tembo’s whereabouts to report to their nearest police station.
“We urge people to stop harboring the fugitives or seek immediate justice. A citizen has been arrested and handed over to the police,” they added. Advertisement
