adminTHE last two weeks were literally hell-on-earth for taxi drivers operating in Mutare at night. The drivers fell prey to a breed of cunning youngsters who went on a robbing spree terrorising them, hijacking vehicles and their stealing property. The attacks were peculiar in that the perpetrators used the same modus operandi – apart from strangling the complainants, they threatened them with Okapi knives.
On a night they could pounce on three drivers, giving law enforcements agents a torrid moment to clear the cases which piled exponentially as days progressed. For the four days they went on the rampage, a total of nine cases were recorded, which amounts to a least a robbery each day.
The robbers’ favourite hunting grounds were night clubs where taxi drivers usually park in the wee hours looking for revellers to take home after merry making. When the suspects were finally caught many were surprised to see that the gang had teenagers as accomplices.
We would like to give thumbs up to police detectives who worked overtime to arrest these young criminals before they took a life. From the look of things, the robbers were trigger happy and the rate at which they were committing the crimes would have soon turned them into hard core criminals if they were left to steal another day.
Like young boys with new toys, the criminals literally went haywire robbing at every turn. Those privy to the investigations revealed that detectives at Mutare Central Police Station worked overtime to solve the crimes.
They worked around the clock gathering evidence that eventually led to the arrest of the seven suspects who had sent taxi drivers into panic mode. The sudden emergence of these criminals –all from Sakubva high-density suburb – onto the scene is a pointer to numerous social problems affecting youths of the day.
Although economic problems such as high unemployment levels are also to blame for the rising criminal activities, the case of these youths has more to do with how they were brought up at their respective homes.
It is a societal problem whereby elders and those in charge in the communities we live fail to hammer good behavioural traits in children that grow within their localities.
Without suggesting anything or rather painting a gloomy picture about the people who brought up these boys, their criminal behaviour speaks volume about where they came from and how they were brought up.
It is interesting to note that these boys were from the same neighbourhood and almost of the same age. They agreed to follow the path they did and they were cock sure of the consequences that will follow in the event that they going to be apprehended.
We are sure that as they started this illegal criminal venture of robbing taxis there were people in their community who noticed this sudden turn of behaviour, but no one cared to give advice.
The community is to blame for products that it churns out.
Some of the robbers were slapped with lengthy seven year sentences that will put them away from the community for quite sometime.
When reading out their sentences, senior Mutare magistrate, Mrs Sekai Chiundura, said she was disturbed by the teenagers’ behaviour. She said although some of their cases were eligible for community service she was giving them custodial sentences to deter youths to follow suit.
Trivialising their cases would have sent the wrong signals. What is most refreshing is the swift reaction by the police to arrest the boys before they did more harm and the fast pace with which the wheels of justice moved to put them behind bars.
Once more we salute the law enforcement agents for a job well done.
Online Reporter