Harare – Luke Zinyengere, the notorious armed robber implicated in last year’s audacious US$720,000 heist at Quest Financial Services, has been re-apprehended following a daring escape from lawful custody last week. His accomplice in the escape, Tafadzwa Richard Marondera, has now come forward to exonerate a prison officer initially accused of aiding their flight.
Marondera, speaking before regional magistrate Fadzai Mthombeni, asserted that prison officer Donald Mudzinga was not involved in their escape plan, claiming it was entirely their own initiative.
Both Marondera and Zinyengere appeared separately before Magistrate Mthombeni, who remanded them to April 3 and 4 respectively for trial. They are facing charges of escaping from lawful custody. Zinyengere faces an additional charge of armed robbery, stemming from the alleged theft of a motorist’s Mazda Demio at gunpoint during his escape.
The duo partially pleaded guilty to escaping from prison but denied using a real firearm, claiming it was a toy.
According to the State, the escape plot was hatched early this month after the High Court dismissed their bail application in the Quest Financial Services robbery case. Marondera and Zinyengere allegedly approached prison officer Madzinga, with whom they frequently interacted, and shared their plan, seeking his assistance to smuggle a gun into Harare Remand Prison.
Zinyengere’s younger brother, Tinotenda, then allegedly brought a revolver concealed in a bowl of rice, which Zinyengere accessed and kept in their cell.
On March 21, the two were transported to court. As they were being escorted back to the prison truck, they allegedly produced the revolver, threatened prison officers, and fled towards Mother Patrick Road, scaling the court’s palisade fencing.
Shots were fired from both sides, and during the ensuing chase, Marondera was apprehended after being tripped by a prison officer.
The stolen vehicle was later found abandoned along Kaguvi Street, where Zinyengere reportedly nearly crashed into a spare parts shop before fleeing on foot.
Police managed to recover fingerprints from the vehicle. On Monday, acting on a tip-off that Zinyengere had returned from Mutare and was attempting to hire a car at the George Bus top in Ruwa, they tracked and arrested him.
Meanwhile, three other individuals accused of assisting the duo’s escape also appeared in court yesterday. Spelile Zinyengere, Obey Rwaendepi, and Tinotenda Zinyengere were each granted US$200 bail by Magistrate Isheunesu Matova.
The State alleges that sometime early this month, the accused person and another inmate facing similar charges applied for bail at the High Court and it was dismissed.
“This resultantly led to Zinyengere’s young brother, Tinotenda to bring the revolver concealed in a bowl of rice which the accused accessed and kept in their cell. On 21 March 2025, the accused hatched a plan to escape from the lawful custody of prison officials using the revolver which they kept in their prison cell. Accused took the revolver, hid it in the pants and went to Harare magistrate court where he appeared in Court 12 together with his accomplice.
“As the accused persons were being escorted back into the prison truck in order to be taken back to Harare Remand Prison, accused and his accomplice sprang up, produced the revolver, threatened prison officers and ran away towards Mother Patrick Road where they scaled over the court’s palisade fencing. Shots were fired from both sides and during the chase, Marondera was tripped down by a prison office; that is how he got arrested,” the State further alleges.
The stolen loot included US$720,676.00, ZAR 10,500.00 and Euro 120.00 cash, as well as a 7.65 mm CZ Vzor pistol and three laptops.
The detectives also recovered a Mark X vehicle, registration number AFR 7059, which Luke Zinyengere had bought for US$11,000.00, an iPhone 14 Pro Max bought for US$ 1,300.00, and an iPhone 15 Pro Max bought for US$1,500.00, allegedly using the proceeds from the robbery.
Two security guards who were on duty at Quest Financial Services during the robbery have already been sentenced to 48 months in jail each for picking up some of the cash dropped by the robbers as they fled and failing to surrender it into evidence.
In June last year, Zinyengere and Marondera were back in the dock, facing fresh charges of robbing an iPhone cell phone dealer. The pair allegedly robbed Tinashe Kelvin Leon Chikove, a second-hand cell phone dealer at Ximex Mall, Harare, at gunpoint, stealing a range of iPhone models.
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