Elmon Tshikhudo
For two years he preyed on unsuspecting women who believed he was a prophet and turned to him with their marital problems.
The man created a Facebook page, claimed to be a prophet and managed to attract more than 100,000 followers – mainly from Venda in Limpopo.
The fake facebook account, in the name of Elma Mutavhatsindi Wa Duthuni, lured victims to secluded places where they were allegedly robbed and raped.
The women were persuaded to come to bushes and rivers to cleanse themselves and solve their problems.
The account wreaked havoc in the district by pointing out people as witches and fingering some prominent names as being behind deaths in the area.
The Nemaranzhe family of Duthuni outside Thohoyandou nearly parted with R20,000 after being told by the ‘moderator’ of the Facebook account to hand over the cash in exchange for the freedom of a missing family member Rolivhuha Nemaranzhe.
She has been missing since December 2020. The family discovered that the account was a scam before they handed over the money.
Now the residents are sighing with relief as the alleged perpetrator who is believed to have been behind the social media account, Mikovhe Vincent Makhavhu, was arrested in Gauteng on a separate charge and was brought back to Thohoyandou where more charges were added.
NPA Limpopo spokesperson Mashudu Dzhangi-Malabi confirmed the man aged 32 appeared at the Thohoyandou Magistrate’s Court on Monday facing five counts of rape.
His case was postponed to 27 July 2021 and he remains in custody.
