ZESA Cable Thieves Shot Dead At Police Roadblock
Two suspected copper cable thieves were shot dead while their four alleged accomplices were arrested by the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) on Saturday at Uzande Business Centre in Zvimba, Mashonaland West.
The gang was intercepted at a police roadblock after allegedly stealing Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) copper cables.
According to the police internal memorandum dated 5 February 2022, on Friday night, the suspects proceeded to Farm 162, Marevanani at Zowa, where they demolished a 200KVA transformer.
The following morning, farm manager Brian Mariwa, spotted the suspects in a thick bush stashing their loot in sacks. Read the police memo:
Whilst at the observation point, a white AXIO vehicle registration number AEP 3237 with two occupants halted on the dust road and the gang from the bush loaded the sacks of copper windings in the boot of the car.
Mr Mariwa contacted ZRP Zvimba police station and (ZESA) Chegutu Ioss control. He also mobilised villagers to confront the gang of vandals.
The villagers managed to apprehend one Lovemore Murimira of house number 3226 Glenview, Harare and the other five managed to escape with the loot in the vehicle.
On the same date at around 9 am, ZESA Chegutu loss controllers and police detectives attended the scene and discovered a 200KVA transformer had been vandalised and three coils of copper windings had been stolen.
Detectives interviewed the suspect Lovemore Murimira who had been apprehended by villagers who confessed to be among five people who had vandalised the transformer.
Detectives took Murimira to the scene for initial indications and while proceeding to Zvimba police station, the investigators were flagged to stop at a roadblock along Marevanani /Zowa dust road where two corpses were lying by the roadside.
The pair of Farai Chigudu and Takudzwa Masese, both of Highfield in Harare, had been shot dead by police after violently attacking them for stopping their car.
Police recovered a digital scale, bolt cutter, pliers and seven plastic sacks loaded with coils of copper windings from the boot of the suspects’ car.
The suspects were named as Mike Tatenda Chigodora of farm 48 Zowa, Lovemore Murimira of 3226 Glenview 1 Harare, Fungai Muzhuzha of Block 13, Geneva, Highfield, Harare, and Jackson Chirindira of 3091 Kambuzuma Section 5, Harare.
They were taken into custody at ZRP Zvimba police station, and the case was recorded under RRB 4648736.
The bodies of the deceased were conveyed to Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital mortuary for post-mortem.
