Police track six Beitbridge armed-robbery suspects before planned heist
Police in Beitbridge arrested six men who were allegedly preparing to carry out another robbery, bringing an investigative breakthrough in a series of attacks on service stations and lodges in the border town.
The arrests were made on 27 September after detectives received information that the group had gathered at Mfelandawonye and was planning a robbery that night. Officers tracked the suspects to the area and arrested Clatton Dube, 36. His arrest led investigators to five alleged accomplices, who were also taken into custody.
The six suspects are Dube, Tapiwa Trymore Moyo, 38, Philimon Bernard Dambwara, 34, Nyasha Muparira, 45, Jameson Chikozho, 25, and Stanley Shumba, 22.
Police said the group is linked to six armed-robbery cases reported in Beitbridge between 16 and 21 May. The reported targets included Redan Service Station on 16 May, Cossy Lodge on 20 May and Mother’s Lodge at Shule Shule on 21 May.
Property and cash valued at ZiG969,570 were stolen during the Mother’s Lodge robbery, with the suspects also being connected to other cases under investigation in the area.
Zimbabwe Republic Police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the operation began with information supplied to detectives about the planned night-time attack.
“Detectives acted on received information that the suspects were planning to commit another robbery during the night on 27th September 2026 and were at Mfelandawonye, Beitbridge,” Nyathi said.
“They proceeded to the area, tracked the suspects and arrested one of the suspects, Clatton Dube, who, upon interviewing, implicated the other suspects, leading to their subsequent arrest.”
Investigators recovered two Blow P29 air pistols. Each pistol had a magazine containing two blank cartridges. Police also recovered one live 9mm round, one spent 9mm cartridge, a metal lever believed to have been used during the robberies and an Oppo A75 cellphone.
Nyathi said the arrests followed investigations into a number of armed-robbery cases in Beitbridge. The recovery of the imitation pistols and ammunition gave detectives further exhibits as they worked to connect the suspects to the individual attacks.
“The suspects led to the recovery of two Blow P29 air pistols, each fitted with a magazine of two blank cartridges, one 9mm live round and one 9mm spent cartridge, a metal lever believed to have been used in the commission of the robbery cases and an Oppo A75 cellphone,” he said.
The Beitbridge arrests were announced alongside a separate arrest in Chegutu, where police detained Tawanda Venge, 41, in connection with four armed robberies committed on the same day.
Police said Venge acted with three accomplices who remain at large. The group allegedly attacked three complainants at Adlui Farm, Rogate Farm and a local mine while armed with machetes and a pistol.
The items reported stolen included two mobile phones, a power bank, cash and 200kg of gold-bearing carbon. The arrests in both towns were aided by information given to investigators, prompting Nyathi to appeal to the public to continue reporting suspected criminal activity.
Members of the public can contact the National Complaints Desk on (0242) 703631 or send information by WhatsApp to 0712 800 197. Reports can also be made at the nearest police station.
The latest arrests come as police continue to pursue robbery networks involved in attacks on homes, businesses, farms and mining operations across Zimbabwe.
The case centres on three attacks carried out between late June and July. In the first, a gang allegedly entered the home of Sekeni Manyunguvadzi at about 10pm on 29 June. The attackers allegedly confronted him at gunpoint, forced him to lie down and broke into a storeroom.
They took a safe containing US$5,000, three vehicle keys, four registration books, a panic button and a title deed. The property was loaded into Manyunguvadzi’s vehicle, which was later abandoned about 200 metres from the house. Police recovered the vehicle, the safe and the other listed property, but the cash was missing.
Two days later, the group allegedly attacked a company in the Richards Road area. A night security guard, Silon Chapadza, was reportedly tied up with shoelaces and pieces of cloth before the robbers moved into the cash office.
The attackers allegedly used explosives to open a safe and escaped with US$39,888, ZiG74,270 and R750. They also took whisky and soft drinks. Live ammunition, damaged cartridges, explosive materials and capped fuses were left behind after the raid.
The third raid took place on 20 July at Heliconvest Company in Mount Pleasant. The gang allegedly climbed over a perimeter wall before attacking employees and visitors. Mobile phones, headphones, a tablet, vehicle keys and a wristwatch valued at US$50,000 were among the property taken.
The robbers also allegedly found a safe containing US$37,694 and 11 mining certificates. The safe was loaded into a Toyota Hilux, which was recovered two days later. Investigators recorded US$89,422 as recovered in connection with the raids, while the wider value of stolen cash, vehicles and goods was placed at more than US$500,000.
Hlongwane has also been linked by investigators to earlier robbery cases. In 2016, he was identified as the alleged leader of a three-man gang accused of using explosives to break into the Filabusi Post Office. More than US$1,000 in cash and airtime was reported stolen.
In 2023, he and four accomplices were implicated in a violent housebreaking in Tshabalala, Bulawayo, where a family was allegedly tied to a headboard while the attackers searched the house for money and valuables. In August 2025, police arrested him and two others after a night-time confrontation near DA Garage on Khami Road. Officers found a bolt cutter and a pick after the suspects fled and hid in a backyard.
Chegutu has also featured in recent police operations against armed gangs. In September 2025, officers chased three suspected robbers along the Chegutu-Chinhoyi Road after a violent robbery near the Newfound Turn-off in Gadzema. The suspects allegedly rammed a Honda Fit into a Nissan Caravan, threatened the driver with machetes and stole more than US$200,000.
Police tracked the suspects to Chegutu’s central business district. The chase ended after officers immobilised their vehicle. Valentine Dipuka and Tinashe Chimukono were arrested, while Tafadzwa Mumba died from gunshot wounds at a local hospital.
Courts have also handed down lengthy prison terms in robbery cases. Six men, including a serving police officer, were jailed for their roles in a planned armed robbery at a gold mine in Mbire, Mashonaland Central.
Constable Tawanda Chihwani, Passion Makiyoni, Shawn Mufandaedza, Carlington Mungazi, Tanaka Mhondoro and Playmore Sayi each received a 12-year sentence, with two years conditionally suspended. They will serve an effective ten years in prison.
The court heard that the group used insider information, wore police anti-riot gear and carried rifles when they overpowered a security guard and rounded up mine workers. They were targeting cash, gold, carbon material and mobile phones worth US$7,650, but abandoned their getaway vehicle after mine workers pursued them. Police later recovered US$1,000, while forensic tests linked firearms, uniforms and cartridges to the offence.
In the Beitbridge and Chegutu cases, police investigations are continuing as officers trace the remaining suspects, examine the recovered exhibits and work to connect the alleged gangs to the full list of robberies reported in the two areas.