One of the suspects was shot and injured on the left knee
as he tried to flee the scene after detectives had cornered the gang. He was
taken to Sally Mugabe Central Hospital for treatment and is reported to be in
stable condition.
The arrested suspects are: Isaac Kufa (36) of Hatfield,
Tonderai Murupiri (28), Patrick Mbundire (21), Casper Chigariro (42), all of
Epworth, Hardlife Steven Makwarimba alias Stavo (45) of Goromonzi and Charles
Yekeye (47) of Unit O in Chitungwiza.
Investigations show that Kufa, Murupiri, Mbundire and
Chigariro would allegedly hijack vehicles before passing them onto Makwarimba
and Yekeye to sell to unsuspecting people.
In one of the cases, Kufa is alleged to have gone to a car
sale in the city and approached Mr Lemeo Chidziva alleging that he wanted to
purchase an Isuzu double cab.
He asked for a test drive and Mr Chidziva joined him. Kufa
then drove the vehicle to Newlands where he lied that he wanted to pick up his
mechanic but he picked up Murupiri.
They then drove back to the car sale where the two said
they wanted to test drive a black Mercedes Benz C200. Mr Chidziva agreed and
the three drove towards Chisipite.
When they reached the roundabout along ED Mnangagwa Road,
Mr Chidziva suggested they returned but Murupiri, who was seated in the back,
allegedly grabbed him by the neck and handcuffed him.
He dragged him to the back seat and ordered him to lie down
at gunpoint. The two allegedly dumped him in a bushy area in Goromonzi before
driving off.
The vehicle was fixed with a tracker and detectives managed
to track it on Thursday while it was parked at a house in Strathaven, leading
to its recovery.
At the house, they found Mr Tashinga Maziriri (25) who was
in the process of buying the car from Makwarimba and Yekeye.
He led the detectives to the two who were arrested while
waiting to receive money from him in Southerton.
Makwarimba and Yekeye then led detectives to Mabvuku
turnoff where the other four accomplices were waiting for their share of the
money.
After seeing that the four had been cornered, Mbundire
attempted to flee and warning shots were fired but he did not take heed,
resulting with him being shot on the left knee. He was found in possession of a
Mazda BT50 car key in his pocket.
The vehicle had been taken by the four suspects from an
ex-Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service officer, George Denga (62), in a
carjacking on Tuesday. It was recovered from a bushy area in Mabvuku and
investigations are still in progress.
In addition, police in Harare have arrested nine suspects,
two of them foreigners, believed to be part of a vehicle smuggling and
carjacking syndicate operating in the Sadc region. Of the nine, three were
arrested in Mainway Meadows in southern Harare after they were found in
possession of two cars — a Range Rover Evoque (registration number HZ 33CN GP)
and a Toyota Fortuner (JH 81 HR GP), worth nearly R1 million together.
The vehicles are suspected to have been stolen in Namibia
before being smuggled to South Africa and then Zimbabwe. It is believed the
suspects wanted to eventually smuggle the two cars into Zambia.
The suspects are a South African, Mpswati Obed Lucar (33),
a Zimbabwean living in South Africa Brian Mabika (29) and a Zambian identified
as SA Kalengo (36).
Investigations revealed that the trio were allegedly part
of a syndicate that had been robbing people of vehicles in the region before
smuggling them to other countries for resale using fake documents.
The trio were arrested on Tuesday following a tip off and
they are still in custody as investigations continue.
Detectives from the CID Vehicle Theft Squad received
information that two vehicles were parked at a house in Mainway Meadows. When
they arrived at the house, they found the two vehicles and the suspects who
they questioned but they failed to give a satisfactory answer, leading to their
arrest.
Detectives discovered that the cars were stolen in Namibia
before they were smuggled into South Africa where fake documents and
registration numbers were manufactured. They were then smuggled into Zimbabwe
en route to Zambia using the fake documents.
Both the engine and chassis numbers were tampered with and
police have since engaged Interpol to assist with investigations. Herald
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