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Tendai Gukutikwa Mutare Bureau
TWO Mutare men allegedly stole copper wire worth about $25 000 from Chiadzwa diamond fields.
Mirirai Chiadzwa (43) and Livingstone Nemadziva were arrested by police officers from the Minerals and Border Control Unit following a tip-off when their vehicle broke down.
Chiadzwa and Nemadziva denied the charges when they appeared before the Mutare provincial magistrate who remanded them out of custody to August 7 on $100 bail each.
They were being charged with contravening Section 3 of the Copper Control Act, Chapter 14:06 and alternatively contravening Section 10 of the Copper Control Act, Chapter 14: 06 which are otherwise known as prohibition against dealing in copper without a licence and failure to give a satisfactory account of possession of copper respectively.
Mutare lawyer Mr Innocent Mandikate of Mugadza, Chinzamba and Associates represented the pair, while Mr Matthew Chimutunga prosecuted.
Allegations were that on July 24, Detective Assistant Inspector Mpofu received information to the effect that there was a broken down Mazda T35 truck loaded with sacks of copper wire along Dangamvura-Dora Road.
Dect Asst Insp Mpofu teamed up with Det Magune and proceeded to the scene, which is in Magwaza Village under Chief Zimunya’s area, where they located the broken down T35 truck loaded with copper cables.
They approached Chiadzwa and Nemadziva and asked them to produce documentation for the copper cables, but they failed to give a satisfactory explanation and were arrested.
“The pair connived with Trust Nemadziva, who is still at large, to steal copper cables from Chiadzwa and transport it to Mutare where they intended to sell it,” Mr Chimutunga said.
The copper weighed 1 230 kilogrammes and all was recovered.
Online Reporter