A 24-year-old woman from Victoria Ranch has admitted in court to engaging in an incestuous relationship with her maternal uncle, claiming she was under the influence of alcohol when the act occurred.
The woman, whose identity is being withheld to protect the family’s privacy, appeared before Masvingo Regional Magistrate Innocent Bepura on October 14, 2025, where she pleaded guilty to charges of incest.
According to court proceedings, the offense took place in April this year, when the accused had an encounter with her uncle at her home.
“I plead guilty to the offence. I slept with him twice that day after he came into my bedroom,” she told the court.
She, however, claimed that she had little recollection of the events due to intoxication.
“It was my first time drinking beer. I was very drunk after drinking Two Keys, which my uncle gave me in a cup,” she explained.
The matter reportedly came to light months later when the woman’s 11-year-old brother discovered a video of the sexual encounter saved on her mobile phone. Shocked by the discovery, their mother reported the incident to the police on September 20.
The accused, however, denied knowledge of the video, insisting that she did not have possession of a phone at the time of the alleged recording.
In her plea for leniency, the woman told the court that she is self-employed, battling poor health, and has a five-year-old child who depends on her. The court has since ordered assessment reports before determining her sentence.
Her co-accused uncle remains at large, and police have launched a manhunt to locate him.
Legal Context
Under Section 75(2) of Zimbabwe’s Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, incest—defined as sexual relations between close relatives—is a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment.
Though considered a grave social taboo, incest cases in Zimbabwe often go unreported due to family pressures, fear of stigma, and efforts to conceal such matters within households.