Police are on high alert as criminals and bogus cops rob tobacco farmers at gunpoint as they move their bales at night, or steal, pick-pocket and commit fraud when the farmers are at the auction floors, especially in Harare.
The farmers have also been urged to be wary of organised
criminals who take advantage of the increased human and vehicular traffic at
the auction floors during the selling season to commit offences, in addition to
duping them.
The police have been receiving reports of tobacco farmers
being robbed at gunpoint on their way to auction floors during the night and
early morning. There has also been a marginal increase in armed robbery, fraud
cases involving card cloning, mobile cash transactions, forgery, theft from
cars and pick-pocketing.
Farmers are also advised not to entertain strangers and to
safeguard their produce, as well as proceeds from sales. Over the past few
years, farmers have lost tobacco worth thousands of dollars after being robbed
of their crop in transit to the auction floors or duped by con-artists. Other
farmers are waylaid by criminals who steal their hard-earned cash, goods and
valuables while others are being targeted by bogus security agents. Last
Friday, national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said
they were concerned about such cases. “We have realised that some criminals are
waylaying tobacco farmers when they will be on their way to the auction
floors,” he said. “Most of the criminals waylay them at controlled traffic
intersections and junctions to rob them.
“Some criminals are also masquerading as members of the
security services targeting these farmers. We have, however, put adequate
security measures to curb these cases.”
Farmers have also been warned against using unroadworthy
vehicles as some were being robbed when these cars develop mechanical faults.
This week, police in Harare arrested one of the criminals and recovered 15
tobacco bales.
In July 2021, four armed robbers intercepted a truck loaded
with 120 bales of tobacco destined for auction floors in Marondera and stole 50
of them before disappearing.
The incident occurred near Two Boy area in Village 17,
Marondera. In March 2019, a farmer lost two tobacco bales to three armed
robbers after an Isuzu truck they were travelling in was blocked by an
unregistered Toyota Noah at about 2am while the farmer was on his way to
Tobacco Sales Floor with three others in a Mazda Bongo with 14 tobacco bales
from Karoi at around 3am. Herald
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