Three security officers and a civilian who raided a primary school in Bulilima district in Plumtree and attacked some of the teachers and got away with R7 110 and US$33 have been arrested.
The suspects, who were armed with machetes and ‘a rifle like weapon which was covered with a cloth leaving out the muzzle’ also stole cellphones belonging to the teachers, nine laptops and a projector donated to the school by Deputy ICT Minister Dingimuzi Phuthi in August last year.
They also raided a local illegal fuel dealer and stole P5000 and R3000 and four cell phones.
According to a police report seen by CITE, the suspects were identified as Mabale Abinel Dube of Dombodema village, Melusi Mehluli Mkhwananzi (32) a Corporal in the Armour squad 1 company, Mailos Charles (33) a police officer based in Fairbridge and Crispen Ngwenya (33) a member of the military intelligence.
The complainants are Nkosinomusa Moyo who is employed as a caretaker at Unangoni Ndlovu’s homestead, Patience Phiri and Tamilika Ncube both teachers at Mathambo primary school, and Sinikiwe Gambiza, the deputy headmistress.
On 11 May at around 2100 hours, the security officers raided Unangoni Ndlovu’s homestead and found Moyo asleep.
“One of the accused persons asked to buy petrol from Moyo who in turn opened the door for the accused persons. The three accused persons entered the house and suddenly demanded some cash whilst producing machetes and a rifle-like weapon which was covered with a cloth leaving out the muzzle. Moyo told the accused that the cash had been collected by her employer who was not around,” read the police report.
They threatened to assault Moyo and demanded petrol and she surrendered about 15 litres. The suspects took the fuel and sprinkled it on all household property threatening to set the house alight if Moyo did not give in to their demands.
“Nkosinomusa Moyo gave in to the accused’s demands and led them to her employer Unangoni Ndlovu’s bedroom where she gave them P5000 and R3000 in cash.”
They also stole four cell phones.
At around midnight, the suspects proceeded to Mathambo primary school and broke into Gambiza’s house using a metal object and a hammer. She hid under the bed with cash belonging to the school which she intended to take to the bank the following morning.
“The three accused persons left the house and proceeded to the next house occupied by Patience Phiri. They forced open the door using a big stone which they found in the schoolyard. They assaulted her with open hands on her face and one of the accused stabbed her once inside her palm with a butcher knife demanding to know Gambiza’s whereabouts. They took from her ZAR100 note cash, Infinix Note 2 cellphone before marching her to complainant Tamilika Ncube’s house.”
They forced their way inside Ncube’s house and started assaulting her demanding to know where Gambiza had gone to. The two teachers were later marched to Gambiza’s house and a thorough search was conducted and they found her hiding under the bed.
“They demanded for some cash and she gave them ZAR7010 from the school Levy which she intended to take for banking in Plumtree town the following morning. She also gave them her cash USD13 and Huawei HUO 10 cellphone.”
After fleeing from the scene, the villagers convened and conducted a search party. The suspect’s footprints led them to Moroka village in Botswana.
The breakthrough in the case came when Botswana police Detectives stationed at Masunga police station got the information that a Motswana national Matlamba Mmoloki Moroka village which is just opposite village 27, Dombodema area, was linked to the armed robbery cases.
“The Botswana Detectives picked and interviewed the suspect who in turn implicated Mabale Abinel Dube and indicated that he was the person who knew the other three accused persons whom he said were Zimbabwean Nationals,” read the police report.
Dube was picked and interviewed and he implicated the three suspects.
“Mabale Abnel Dube indicated that his role was to introduce Matlamba MMoloki to the accused persons who had planned to execute coming from Botswana and used the same route back into Botswana so that it would appear as if the suspects reside in Botswana. MMoloki ferried the three accused persons with their loot after the robbery from Moroka village to Ramokgwebana border where they used an undesignated port of entry at Nxele village into Zimbabwe.”
Dube has since appeared before Plumtree Regional Court Magistrate Sithembiso Sibanda.
