They have already killed many this year and will kill others before the calendar morphs into 2026 on December 31. Dozens of them hide in plain sight. Parents, children, siblings, neighbours, friend and relatives. All perfectly ordinary citizens. Except, they have blood on their hands. And live with the fear of having their gory secrets exposed one day.

Inside the deadly rise of hit-and-run drivers — and why justice keeps slipping into the dark

Multimedia journalist James Jemwa spent the evening laughing with colleagues — “sharing jokes till around 7pm, in a jovial mood,” a friend said. No one imagined that the next day would end with him lying lifeless at Parirenyatwa Hospital mortuary, killed by a speeding motorist who did not stop, did not report, and has not been found. Jemwa’s death is just another statistic in a troubling, growing pattern that is claiming lives across the country — quietly, suddenly, and often without justice.

A pattern written in blood

Between September and November 2025, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) posted a number of fatal hit-and-run cases on their X account.

Lupane–Nkayi Road, Robert Gabriel Mugabe Road, Bulawayo Road, Crowborough Bridge, Khami Road, Christmas Pass, Manyame Bridge, Harare–Chirundu Road. Nine deaths. Six weeks. Zero traceable drivers.

A cop privately admitted that that most times there is no usable physical evidence and even when there are witnesses, they are often shell shocked and not trained to observe the details that matter.

In one recent incident reported on the police X handle, a killer motorist managed to drive off before any of the witnesses thought to capture the reg plate number.

The cop also said that if drivers observe the legal directive to immediately stop and render assistance, some lives could be saved.

The eyes that can see, record and tell

A Harare-based tech security supplier, who declined to be named, says the solution is easy and practical, but calls for wider civic engagement.

“Even if the actual hit is not captured on camera, police can still track the car. You check cameras on surrounding roads. Look for a car with fresh damage. Look for erratic driving. Follow its route. This is how it’s done globally,” he said.

He says homeowners and businesses are the sleeping giant and can quickly cover a large percentage of the country and make it harder for criminals of all sorts to skulk off into the dark.

“If just 10% of all private CCTV cameras pointed towards the road, we would create a community surveillance network that protects everyone from armed robbers, muggers and other criminals, including hit and run drivers,” he said.

He cited a Belvedere incident where men in a car tried to snatch a woman’s bag.

“They sped off, but a nearby house’s CCTV captured everything. If the people in that car had killed someone, the evidence would already exist,” he said.

The spiritual reckoning

A young man who spoke to ZNyaya said some drivers flee because they fear being financially exploited by the bereaved.
“You will be asked to pay compensation for the dead person, yet you were not at fault, and you are already going through a lot emotionally, with the police, and also damage to your car,” he said. His own father, he added, faced this.
“Although there were witnesses who testified that the person got onto the road and there was nothing that my dad could do, and later he was cleared by the police, but he still had to foot the funeral bill for the deceased and pay over US$2000 to the family. That’s like totally crazy!” the young man said.

PROMETRA chairman Beaven Munyengeterwa (Changamire Moyo) said fleeing doesn’t protect anyone. He noted that many social and mental problems he encounters stem from people avoiding responsibility after taking a life. PROMETRA is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of traditional medicine, cultural heritage, and Indigenous knowledge systems.

“That action of running away is not a solution. The avenging spirit (Ngozi/Ingozi) will always come back to haunt you with manifestations affecting the extended family.”

He says he’s assisted people who sought help years later, when the cost — emotional, financial and spiritual — had grown heavier than early reparations would have been.

Writer Tinashe Muchuri added that the spiritual impact is instant even if the fleeing perp does not realise it then. “Even if the death is accidental and the deceased was legally at fault, their shadow immediately follows you and the family must assist you to call away that shadow (kukamura mumvuri) and send it on to the spirit world,” said Muchuri.

Some people interviewed alleged that certain apostolic sects (mapostori) help offenders bypass compensation by “sending away” the ngozi.

Bishop Shadreck Charakupa of the Divine Church of Christ rejected the allegation saying it shows ignorance.

“Mapostori are not a homogenous group. There are those who use the Bible and don't believe in communing with the spirits of the dead, they are immediately dispatched to heaven or hell, according to their actions on earth. Then there are others who mix Zimbabwean beliefs and Christianity,” he said.

But he stressed that even within this diversity, there is no question on the legal actions and moral obligation to discuss with the relatives of the deceased and come to an agreement.

“No church encourages wrongdoing and running away after killing someone is not just criminal, it is a sin before God,” Bishop Charakupa said.

But until cops, spiritual leaders, and tech experts put their heads together, James Jemwa and the others will be joined by more victims of the phantom killers of Zimbabwe’s roads.