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when a maid who snat-ched her employer’s toddler became greedy and dema-nded a ransom.
Frantic mother Ms Tapiwa Muchiriwesi had never gi-ven up hope, phoning her former maid, Anna Billiat (18) all the time since Prince Tizai (2) was snatched on Nove-mber 7 last year, a week after the maid had been hired to work at the Muchiriwesi residence in Chisipite.
But the phone was never answered and police could never get a lead on Billiat.
But then, last Friday, came the first miracle. A friend of Billiat answered the phone. She lied and said the ex-maid was in Botswana, but she also said the toddler was safe and Billiat was interested in returning him.
And then Billiat phoned, on Saturday and told Ms Mu-chiriwesi to bring clothes and US$150.
Well that is all the lead the police needed.
The call was speedily traced to Mvurwi and the police quickly drove down, rounded up Billiat and rescued the child. No one even had to bother with a trap.
Prince was quickly brought home to his mother and Billiat was taken to the cells.
Yesterday, she had her minutes in court. She pleaded guilty and will now brood for the next 28 months in a jail cell on why kidnapping is a bad idea.
And she is lucky she looked after the toddler while she had him, and made no threats when she phoned. Otherwise she could have been inside a lot longer.
On November 7 at around 7am, Ms Muchiriwesi left her son in the company of Billiat while going to work.
She returned at midday and discovered that the two were nowhere to be found.
She never gave up hope.
She kept phoning Billiat on her mobile phone, but she was not reachable. She then did her own search as well as telling the police. But everyone drew a blank until the friend answered the phone last week.

Ms Muchiriwesi had not hired a maid without some checks.
An acquaintance of hers had brought Billiat round and claimed she was her sister. But when Ms Muchiriwesi confronted her later the acquaintance denied all knowledge of the teenager and revealed, now it was too late, that they had met in the street.
Harare magistrate Mr Clever Tsikwa, who heard the case, sentenced Billiat to 48 months of which 20 were suspended on condition she does not commit a similar offence within five years.
In passing the sentence, Mr Tsikwa considered that Billiat deprived the boy of freedom and both the mother and the child were traumatised with their four-month separation.
“There are no allegations that she ill-treated the child,” said Mr Tsikwa.
But kidnapping, the magistrate noted, remained a serious offence and an act of brutality.
“I considered leniency in passing the sentence but it must not be taken too far for the sake of justice,” said Mr Tsikwa.
Prosecutor Ms Tapiwa Joyce Fusire wanted a far stiffer penalty saying Billiat’s moral blameworthiness was very high.
“She deprived the minor from his mother’s affection, support and he was removed from the environment he was used to and in the process the boy was plunged into an identity crisis.
“When parents leave their children with maids they intend to leave them in safe hands and expect to see them in good health when they return home. If it was not her intention (to keep the child forever) she could have called the complainant demanding a ransom,” Ms Fusire said.
And Ms Muchiriwesi, what is her last word?
“I almost gave up hope. I thought the boy was dead. But something kept telling me to keep phoning the maid’s number, and at last I got through.
“When she returned my call I was very happy. Initially I wanted to go alone and pay the ransom, but then decided to tell the police.” And the police were able at last to act.