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Obey Sibanda
A CLOSELY knit syndicate involving gold panners, herdsmen and border patrol officials has been unearthed where they work in cahoots to smuggle gold into neighbouring South Africa and Botswana.
Scores of villagers domiciled in the border line are involved in this well-orchestrated smuggling racket where they not only offer their homesteads to smugglers but also assist them to smuggle the gold into the neighbouring countries.
They even go further to hide gold bars in their cowsa�� rectums, herd them towards the border where they then recover the precious stones which they then manage to dispose of with assistance from their colleagues in the neighbouring countries.
Villages that are allegedly involved in this trade include Nxele, Madebe, Tshitshi, Mpoengs, Dombolefu, Dumba, Makakavhule, Lutumba and Chicago.
Investigations by this publication further revealed that villagers furnish the smugglers with essential information on how to evade police operations, house them until the dust settles and facilitate their exit using illegal border points.
Most of the areas where this practice is rampant are inaccessible by road making police patrols virtually impossible.
A local businessman from Tshitshi village Noel Ncube said that when Zimbabwe Republic Police and their counterparts in Botswana intensify operations in an attempt to tackle a widening trade deficit, smugglers go to the extent of even getting human mules to swallow nuggets.
a�?The latest apparent smuggling follows a series of other incidents where people have concealed gold in their bodies and some stack nuggets in cowsa�� rectums,a�? said Ncube.
With the aid of villagers-cum-middlemen, this misdemeanour is becoming bigger, much more coordinated and sophisticated by the day.
Smugglers stay one step ahead by building an intelligence picture of what the law enforcers are up to and spoiling their plans during operations.
A police officer based at Beitbridge border post said a network of Beitbridge and Plumtree border security officials were allegedly working for organised criminals, including smuggling the precious metal.
a�?Organised villagers work with a network of customs officials and police officers to assist in smuggling. Police have on many occasions missed their targets during operations because they will be tipped before it happens,a�? he said.
One of the gurus in the trade only identified as Bro Bhiza highlighted that huge restrictions on imports, and further increasing the import duties substantially had opened up arbitrage opportunities for smuggling gold into the country through clandestine means.
a�?The craze for physical gold cana��t be explained unless you see the number of jewelry shops and the money we get in South Africa,a�? said Bro Bhiza.
Investigations put it in plain sight that a web of local and foreign dealers is behind the illegal gold trade.
Smugglers work in cahoots with influential local businesspeople and hopeless villagers who are in desperate need of food and cash for survival.
For their sweat and allegiance, villagers are given huge sums of cash, food and valuable goods smuggled from South Africa and Botswana.
a�?We are actually aware of the consequences if we are busted by the police, but there is nothing we can do. Hunger is forcing us to look for alternatives. There is a need to fill our bellies, children need school fees and clothes,a�? said Gogo MaNcube of Dombolefu.
The gold smuggled in rectums is sold through the unofficial channel in foreign gold markets trading in smuggled gold.
Smugglers typically buy gold from places where the precious metal is relatively cheap and where there are fewer trade restrictions, such as Filabusi and Bubi districts.
The current cash crisis which has seen local banking institutions limiting cash withdrawal by depositorsa�� has been blamed for fuelling smuggling of gold by small scale miners to sell their produce in the black market which has ready cash in the neighbouring countries.
Smugglers blame financial institutions for increasing demand for cash which has eroded their revenue. This is evidenced by very little cash circulating in their field of trade.
A small scale miner based in Inyathi, Themba Ndlovu said private gold buyers from South Africa and Botswana were offering better premiums than Fidelity Printers and Refiners (FPR) and they received cash upon delivery.
a�?When you sell your produce to private buyers you are guaranteed to get your cash as soon as you deliver. Their prices are more lucrative than those pegged by Fidelity Printers and Refiners,a�? highlighted Ndlovu.
Ndlovu further pointed out that only a few small scale miners could get the licence to hold the gold, that also in very small quantity, with the result that the members ofA� his community, who were depending only on their traditional occupation of gold panning, lost their business and their financial condition deteriorated and families shattered.
Last year officer commanding Bulilima-Mangwe District, Chief Superintendent Gideon Zulu, admitted that gold smuggling activities were rife at the Plumtree border lines.
a�?Smuggling activities involving other goods are being conducted along the border line. Wea��re, however, struggling to patrol all areas as the border line is inaccessible by road,a�? said Chief Supt Zulu.
Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Obedingwa Mguni said: a�?We are aware of such conduct. We visited the place and realised that they take advantage of the poor roads in these villages. We have set up a joint operation involving soldiers and police officers, but I can tell you the results are promising.a�?
Traditional leaders in the districts are equally concerned and acknowledge the need to tighten security at border posts as well as securing the border lines as part of a broader strategy to plug loopholes.
a�?If this goes on unabated everyone in my area will become a criminal. There is rampant smuggling of the mineral, as miners seek higher prices in neighbouring countries. Smuggled mineral is passing through illegal crossing points without being detected,a�? said Chief Tshitshi.
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