ANOTHER CASH HEIST: Armed robbers hit Bulawayo AGAIN

BULAWAYO – In a meticulously planned operation that has once again exposed the vulnerabilities of the city’s financial security, armed robbers successfully raided a Mukuru money transfer agency in central Bulawayo on Wednesday morning. The daring heist, which saw the criminals vanish with over USD $78,000 and half a million South African Rand, occurred just a stone’s throw away from the Bulawayo Central Police Station, marking another dark chapter in the city’s escalating battle against violent crime.

The incident unfolded with chilling precision shortly after 7:00 AM at the corner of 8th Avenue and Jason Moyo Street. According to police reports and witness accounts, the robbers did not storm the front entrance like common thugs. Instead, they employed a more sinister tactic: kidnapping a female employee in the parking lot before she could even step into the building to begin her shift.

National police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the details of the abduction and the subsequent robbery. “The suspects forcibly escorted her into the offices and ordered her to open the strong room and a safe,” Commissioner Nyathi stated. The employee, facing the barrel of a gun and the terrifying reality of her situation, had little choice but to comply with the demands of the masked assailants.

Inside the facility, the robbers worked with a level of efficiency that suggests they had intimate knowledge of the branch’s layout and security protocols. They seized exactly USD $78,141 and R501,820 in cash. To ensure their tracks were covered, the gang also dismantled and took the digital video recorder (DVR) used for surveillance and the branch’s panic button, effectively blinding the security system and preventing any immediate alarm from being raised.

“The total money stolen is $78,141 and R501,820,” Nyathi confirmed, highlighting the significant financial blow dealt to the agency.

What makes this heist particularly remarkable—and perhaps most disturbing for the local business community—is how invisible it was to the public. As the robbery was being carried out in the backroom, the branch actually opened for business on schedule at 7:00 AM. Customers began queuing and conducting transactions, entirely unaware that a major crime was being committed just metres away behind closed doors.

One customer, who arrived at the scene shortly before the doors opened, expressed utter disbelief at the news. “I was there just before 7:00 AM and the branch opened as scheduled at 7:00 AM. I was shocked to hear there was a robbery,” the customer said, requesting anonymity for security reasons. This seamless transition from a crime scene to a functioning business outlet suggests the robbers had fled through the back door long before the first customer stepped inside, leaving the traumatised staff to maintain a facade of normalcy until the police were finally notified.

The location of the robbery adds a layer of audacity to the crime. The Mukuru branch sits a mere block away from the Bulawayo Central Police Station, the regional headquarters for law enforcement. The fact that such a high-stakes robbery could be executed so close to the heart of the city’s police force has raised serious questions about the effectiveness of current patrols and the boldness of the criminal underworld.

This latest incident is not an isolated event but rather part of a worrying surge in armed robberies targeting money transfer agencies and banks across Zimbabwe. Just last year, on 3 October 2024, Bulawayo was the site of the largest cash heist in the country’s history. In that incident, six masked gunmen intercepted a cash-in-transit van at an Ecobank branch at the Parkade Centre, escaping with a staggering USD $4.4 million in a raid that lasted a mere 149 seconds.

The parallels between the Ecobank heist and the Mukuru robbery are hard to ignore. Both involved high levels of coordination, the targeting of cash-heavy environments, and an apparent disregard for the proximity of law enforcement. In the Ecobank case, police later confirmed that the robbery was likely an “inside job,” with bank employees suspected of colluding with the criminals. While no such allegations have been made regarding the Mukuru heist, the precision of the kidnapping and the disabling of specific security equipment point to a professional outfit that does not leave things to chance.

The trend of targeting Mukuru outlets, in particular, has become a national concern. Only last month, on 8 February 2026, a three-man gang pounced on a Mukuru agency in the Mabelreign suburb of Harare. In that daylight raid, the robbers made off with USD $5,600 and R26,000. Fortunately, in that instance, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) moved with remarkable speed, apprehending two of the suspects within minutes of the crime.

However, the Bulawayo suspects remain at large. The city has become a focal point for these “brazen heists,” a term that has become all too common in local headlines. In 2025 alone, Zimbabwe recorded over 1,200 armed robbery cases, a statistic that reflects a broader breakdown in the security of the nation’s cash-based economy. Despite a reported 13% drop in cash-in-transit robberies towards the end of 2025, the shift towards targeting smaller, fixed outlets like Mukuru suggests that criminal syndicates are simply adapting their strategies.

The impact of these robberies extends beyond the immediate financial loss. For the employees of these agencies, the psychological toll is immense. The female employee at the Bulawayo branch, who was accosted in a place where she should have felt safe, now joins a growing list of victims who have looked down the barrel of a gun while doing their jobs.

Local businesses are now calling for a complete overhaul of security measures. “We cannot continue like this,” said a shop owner adjacent to the Mukuru branch. “If they can rob a place a block from the police station, they can rob anyone. We are living in fear, and the security companies we pay for seem powerless against these gangs who have better intelligence and more firepower.”

The ZRP has launched a massive manhunt for the suspects involved in the Wednesday morning heist. They are appealing to any members of the public who may have seen suspicious activity in the parking lot or near the back entrance of the 8th Avenue branch between 6:30 AM and 7:15 AM to come forward.

“We are following several leads,” a source within the Bulawayo CID, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed. “We are looking into the possibility that this gang is linked to other recent robberies in the city. The removal of the DVR suggests they knew exactly where the heart of the security system was. This wasn’t their first time.”

As the investigation continues, the people of Bulawayo are left to wonder when the next “brazen heist” will occur. The city, once known for its relative calm, is now grappling with a reputation for high-stakes crime that threatens its economic stability and the safety of its citizens. The Mukuru robbery is a stark reminder that in the world of professional crime, proximity to the law is no longer a deterrent, and the quest for “easy” cash continues to drive a violent and sophisticated criminal element.

For now, the branch at the corner of 8th Avenue and Jason Moyo Street remains open, its staff shaken and its security presumably bolstered, but the memory of the Wednesday morning raid remains a chilling testament to the audacity of those who operate in the shadows of the city’s streets.

The police have urged anyone with information to contact the nearest police station or use the ZRP hotlines. As Commissioner Nyathi concluded his briefing, the message was clear: the authorities are under pressure to deliver results, and the hunt for the men who walked away with $78,000 and half a million Rand is very much on.