Zimbabwean man claims he was drugged and raped by gang of women

A Zimbabwean man has accused a gang of three women of kidnapping, drugging and raping him in the fifth sexual attack targeting male victims in under a year. A police spokesman said the 26-year-old was offered a lift in the southern city of Bulawayo but passed out in the vehicle after he was grabbed from behind and his face covered with a cloth. He said he fell unconscious again after being given a substance that tasted like alcohol.

"After he woke up he was naked and the ladies took turns to rape him and abused him," police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said. The man told police he passed out after the assault but was later dumped by the women. "The ladies also took his money, $US300 and cell phone," said Mr Bvudzijena. "The intentions by the three women are not clear but we suspect it could for ritual purposes."

The incident on Friday was the fifth such attack reported in several parts of the country, carried out by groups of women of varying size. "It could be one or more gangs involved which is doing this. In all cases the victims are caught unaware and they are given drugs which make them dizzy," said Mr Bvudzijena. The first attack happened last November when three women kidnapped an 18-year-old man.

In February, a group of four women forced a 25-year-old to have sex with them at gunpoint. Last month, a 44-year-old man, who was ordered to wear a condom, was targeted by two women while a man stood guard. A 30-year-old man was also drugged by three women, two of whom had guns, and sexually assaulted. Under Zimbabwean law, the charge of rape applies only to women victims.