A man who attempted to steal a 50kg bag of maize meal attacked the owner of the house with a hand hoe and vanished into thin air at Mukula Village last on Monday night.
Joyce Mulaudzi (40) is still nursing head injuries after she received treatment at Donald Fraser Hospital.
The bloodthirsty man also left an axe, which was later handed to the petty headman of the sub-village at the victim's place. It is further alleged that the very same man attacked other eight families in the village, injuring three community members, and disappeared into the night.
An unemployed mother of four, Joyce said she came home early and started preparing food for the family without suspecting anything. She explains what happened later: "We went to sleep as usual, never thinking that anything bad would happen. We heard footsteps in the middle of the night but we ignored them, thinking that they might be of people passing through, as our house is near the footpath."
Joyce said she was awakened by her child, Avhashoni, who screamed to alert her that there was somebody in the kitchen. "I then woke up and rushed to the kitchen and found a man dragging my 50kg bag of maize meal away without saying a word. It was still full as I had bought it a day earlier. I screamed to him to leave my maize alone, and that was when all hell broke loose."
She said within a few seconds, the man grabbed a hand hoe in the kitchen and hit her on the head. "He suddenly attacked me and, within seconds, blood was oozing all over my face. Before I was injured, I could see that the man had put on a brown lumber jacket and heavy boots. While I was busy screaming for help, the man sneaked out and disappeared into the night. When the neighbours arrived, the man was already gone, leaving his axe and my bag of maize meal behind."
Regional police spokesperson Capt Mashudu Malelo encouraged those who have been attacked to lay charges. He said the police were not aware of the incident because no one came forward to complain. "We will start with our investigations while at the same time waiting for the victims to come forward."