A suspected rapist, aged 27, who threatened his victims with Satanism appeared before a Harare court Tuesday charged with 22 counts of rape as well as robbery.

Norton-based Timothy Musakanya is also answering to assault and attempted rape charges.

He appeared before Harare magistrate Hosea Mujaya, who remanded him in custody to March 16.

Musakanya denied the charges and told the court that all the victims were his clients.

He said they borrowed money from him and were supposed to repay interest but breached the contract, prompting him to confiscate their mobile phones.

He said the rape allegations were fabricated to punish him for taking the phones.

Court heard that the victims include young adults and married women desperate for employment who fell prey to his tricks.

Prosecutors say Musakanya started his vile habits sometime in September last year and terrorised nearly 20 women from Norton until he was arrested a few days ago.

On one occasion in November 2015 Musakanya met one complainant’s aunt and claimed that his sister was looking for a girl to work in her Harare shop.

The aunt referred her 18-year-old niece who met up with Musakanya on the same day.

Court heard the two proceeded to Harare and dropped off at Long Chen plaza along Harare-Norton road. It was around 3pm.

Musakanya then started buying time until it got dark, telling the victim he was waiting for his sister to finish work. Later he made a phone call and told the girl that his sister said they should go home and wait for her there.

He then walked with the unsuspecting girl for two hours from Belvedere to Malbrough, herding towards Pomona.

Court heard they then reached a secluded bushy area where Musakanya suddenly attacked the girl from behind.

He allegedly told the girl to comply and told her that he was not an employment agent but a Satanist.

Musakanya told the girl that he was going to summon his snakes and frogs which would suck her breasts and have sex with her.

The frightened girl knelt down, pleading with Musakanya but he took advantage of her fear and forcibly removed her clothes before raping her once.

After the alleged attack, court heard Musakanya robbed the girl of her cell phones and other valuables.

Prosecutors say he repeated the same tricks on different occasions on all his victims who hail from Norton.

It is alleged that he would take the victims to a bushy area close to the National Sports Stadium, the Pomona dumpsite and maize fields near Bluffhill industrial site.

Musakanya never used protection while raping the women and girls.

The court heard only a few managed to fight him off and escape the abuse. Other victims were set free after he realised that they were having their menstrual cycle.

Musakanya was arrested after one of the victims saw him walking at some shops in Norton and alerted the police.