A suspected car thief died in horrific circumstances on Saturday morning in Mt Darwin shortly after stealing the vehicle from its unsuspecting owner.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) said the owner of the vehicle, a Toyota Runx, had parked the car at a nightclub but left it unattended with the keys on the ignition port just after 2 AM.

The suspect, Tafadzwa Joshua Wenje (22), pounced on the vehicle and drove away but was found dead, with severe burns while the stolen vehicle was in flames. ZRP said:

The ZRP is investigating a case of theft of a motor vehicle where Tafadzwa Joshua Wenje (22) stole a Toyota Runx vehicle after the complainant had left the car unattended with the keys on the ignition port, at a nightclub in Mt Darwin, on 27/08/22 at around 0215 hours.

The complainant made a follow-up using a friend’s Toyota Hilux vehicle and found the car in flames near the 3G Service station. The naked body of the suspect was seen about 67m from the wreckage with severe burns.

In an unrelated incident, police said they are investigating a murder case which occurred at Big Boom Mine, Kwekwe, on Friday.

The victim was stabbed with a knife and died after he tried to restrain two men from assaulting another man while they were drinking beer. Police said:

Misheck Makuvaza (25) was assaulted by three suspects only known as Dunmore Mhosva, Dingani Bhamala and Shelton Mapolisa, after he tried to restrain the suspects from assaulting Isaac Simango (42), at a beer binge.

One of the suspects drew a knife from his pockets and stabbed the victim once on the left thigh.

The victim was taken to Kwekwe General Hospital, where he died on 27/08/22 while admitted.