National police
spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the incident, describing it as
a highly co-ordinated operation pointing to the possibility of an inside job.
The robbery
occurred around 8AM at Nkolozi Investments, located on the first floor of the
CIPF Building at the corner of Jason Moyo Street and 9th Avenue.
“The three
suspects walked into the complex and made their way to the bureau de change,
pretending to be customers. They then unleashed a short reign of terror,
attacking the guard and seizing his firearm,” said Comm Nyathi.
He said the
suspects demanded access to the safes and a remote key, before tampering with
the CCTV system and erasing footage from that morning. They also took the
employees’ cellphones and cash before fleeing the scene.
“We suspect
this could be an inside job because of the precision with which the robbery was
executed. However, I want to assure members of the public that it is only a
matter of time before the suspects are apprehended. Investigations are
underway,” said Comm Nyathi.
He said police
have since intensified crackdowns on armed robbery gangs, warning businesses
handling large sums of cash to tighten their security systems.
A witness at
the scene said the suspects fled on foot suggesting they probably had a getaway
car parked some distance away.
“It happened so
fast such that there was no time to react. We were all shocked and temporarily
immobilised by what was happening. I have never experienced such a scenario and
it was really scary,” said the witness.
Company
officials declined to comment, citing ongoing investigations.
The latest
incident comes amid a spike in armed robberies and hijackings in Bulawayo. Last
month, suspected robbers shot and injured a 33-year-old man believed to be a
foreign currency dealer before robbing him of US$4 000 and R60 000.
Police have
repeatedly raised concern over the growing menace of armed robberies, often
targeting banks, businesses, forex dealers and individuals keeping large sums
of money in their homes. Zimbabwe has in recent years recorded several
high-profile robberies, the most infamous being the US$4 million Ecobank heist,
which occurred in October last year in Bulawayo as the money was being
transferred from the bank to a security van. The robbery is Zimbabwe’s biggest
cash heist in years.
That case
shocked the nation and underlined the growing involvement of organised criminal
syndicates in armed robberies. Chronicle
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