The eight suspected armed robbers, most of whom had been on
the most-wanted persons’ list for years and who were arrested in a major raid
in Beitbridge on Monday, appeared in court yesterday for their initial remand.
Mussa Taj Abdul (47), Charles Lundu (47), Rudolf Kanhanga
alias Tapiwa Munatsi (29), Tapiwa Mangoma alias Tapa (27), Innocent Jairosi
(32), Prince Makodza (31), Liberty Mupamhanga (29) and Godfrey Mupamhanga (27)
arrived at the Harare Magistrates Courts accompanied by more than 10 police
officers from the CID Homicide Unit on two charges of armed robbery, although
further similar charges are likely to be put later.
They were not asked to plead when they appeared before
magistrate Mr Richard Ramaboa who remanded them in custody and advised them to
apply for bail at the High Court.
Magistrates do not have jurisdiction to grant bail for
those accused of serious crimes of violence.
Although the eight were arrested on Monday, police obtained
a warrant earlier this week allowing them to hold them longer than the normal
period for questioning.
Defence lawyers — Tawanda Takaindisa and Ashley Mugiya —
raised complaints that their clients were bitten by police dogs at the time of
arrest. The raid on the Beitbridge house that netted the eight was led by CID
but with back up from dog handlers and the Support Unit.
The lawyers asked the court to allow their clients to show
the injuries they sustained as a result of the dogs’ attack. Mr Ramaboa ordered
the State, led by Mr Michael Reza, to investigate the complaints raised.
Giving details of the first of the two robberies forming
yesterday’s charges, the State heard that on July 24 the gang, with others
still at large, attacked 40 Longford Street in Queensdale, Harare, arriving in
separate vehicles.
They removed precast wall panels to gain entry into the
stand and then, masked and armed with a shotgun and a pistol, forced open the
lounge door with an iron bar and allegedly confronted the complainant’s
brother-in-law who was seated in the lounge.
He shouted for help and fled towards the kitchen intending
to escape through the back door where he was confronted by another robber who
was standing outside the house.
They manhandled him and tied his hands from behind with
shoelaces. It is alleged that the gang went on to confront the complainant who
had locked himself in the bedroom from the inside together with his wife and
children.
They forced open the door with an iron bar and confronted
the family before ordering the couple to lie down on the floor while covering
the wife with a blanket. They assaulted the complainant demanding cash and
valuables while ransacking the room.
They allegedly stole US$1 473 from the wife’s handbag and 5
cellphones, handbags, eye glasses, power banks, face masks and valuables. The
total value of the stolen goods was US$7 516.
On the second robbery, it is alleged that on the following
day, July 25, the accused persons in the company of their nine co-accused
persons still at large, armed themselves with a shotgun, pistol, hammer and
iron bars and went to the Trauma Centre at 1 Borrowdale Lane.
Upon arrival, they ordered security guards Simbai Pawandiwa
and Jerifanos Fana, who were manning the entrance, to lie down but the guards
ran towards the premises shouting for help.
The accused ran after them, firing shots. Pawandiwa hid in
a toilet while Fana ran into another toilet situated near the administration
block. The gang broke the door of the toilet in which Fana had hidden,
manhandled him, hit him with a hammer on the head and demanded to know where
the safe was.
The court heard that the gang also confronted the security
guard who was manning the emergency room and the receptionist and manhandled
them, assaulted them with an iron bar, searched the reception area and stole a
ZTE cellphone from the security guards.
The gang also allegedly broke down the door to the office
of Cheril Masvosva and threatened her before stealing her cellphone.
The gang then confronted Wilbert Tokoda, who was in the
security room, and threatened to shoot him with the shotgun and ordered him to
lie down. They tied his hands behind with cable tires and force-marched him
into the administration block where they opened the door with an iron bar.
They allegedly proceeded to the human resources and
accounts office where they stole two laptops and took a safe from the office to
the main entrance of the administration block offices where they tried to open
it but failed.
The gang forced open the boardroom door and then confronted
five other complainants who were sleeping. They threatened to shoot them before
stealing their cellphones. During the course of the robbery, Pawandiwa the
security guard who was in the toilet, called the owner’s wife and alerted her
of the robbery.
The owner and his wife went to the Trauma Centre with their
security guards to rescue their workers and as they arrived the gang fled. The
complainant gave chase and rammed twice into the back of the accused persons’
car, which plunged into a side-road ditch at corner Borrrowdale and Beach
Roads. The complainant then lost control of his vehicle and hit a precast wall.
The accused in the rammed car then fled on foot with their firearms while the
other getaway car escaped. A report was then made at ZRP Borrowdale.
The total value of items stolen is US$3 465 and nothing was
recovered. Herald
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