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Raymond Jaravaza, Bulawayo Bureau
ONE of the seven armed robbers who audaciously seized three trunks containing a staggering US$4 442 000 — believed to be the largest amount ever stolen in a Zimbabwean bank heist — coolly scouted the crime scene from a street corner opposite the financial institution.
In a brazen act that stunned the nation, he nonchalantly bought chewing gum from a vendor before sprinting towards the bank to execute the daring mid-afternoon robbery, which lasted a mere 149 seconds.
The robbery took place at Ecobank branch located at the Parkade Centre, corner Fife Street and 9th Avenue in Bulawayo on Thursday afternoon.
Without warning, the suspect ran towards the bank and immediately assisted another armed man in subduing one of the security guards, who was armed with a shotgun and standing at the back of the Safeguard vehicle.
All this happened in the blink of an eye while a female vendor who sold the robbery suspect chewing gum looked on in disbelief. The chewing gum cost R1.
“He bought chewing gum, but didn’t say anything to me. He kept looking all over the place then suddenly ran in the direction of the bank. When I looked to see why he was running, I saw him wrestling one of the security guards. Everything happened so fast. When I saw guns, I grabbed my stuff and ran in the opposite direction. In a very short space of time, the white pick-up vehicle sped away, turned left at the traffic lights, and disappeared,” said the female vendor, who asked not to be named.
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The Ford Ranger single cab vehicle sped off along Fife Street towards 10th Avenue.
In addition to the cash grabbed by the armed robbers, the suspects also made off with three guns belonging to the security company. The guns have been identified by police as two pistols and a shotgun.
“Three of the Cash-in-Transit details were armed with a shotgun, which had two rounds of ammunition, a pistol (make and type unknown) with 10 rounds, and a Canik 9mm pistol with five rounds. The accused persons approached the Cash in Transit team, assaulted the details with the butt of AK-47 rifles they were carrying, and disarmed the security team.
“The suspects ordered the security team to lie down on their stomachs and warned them against raising any alarm. The security team complied, and the accused persons took away their guns. The accused persons dragged three trunks that had cash, loaded them into a getaway vehicle, and drove off at high speed. The suspects also took away the three guns which they had taken from the security team,” said Bulawayo acting police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele.
Police are concerned that the three guns might be used to commit other robberies.
A police detective with the Vehicle Theft Squad (VTS) said the number plates on the getaway vehicle belong to a Mazda Demio, although he declined to name the vehicle owner since the robbery case is still under investigation. The number plate is AGP2333.
“Stealing number plates from another car is a modus operandi used by criminals to try and throw off police investigators. The number plates captured in videos circulating online are actually for a Mazda Demio. Criminals usually target vehicles in car parks in Western areas or people that knock off from work at night and park their cars in areas such as Parirenyatwa Street, where it’s easy to steal the number plates,” said the detective.
The bank robbery could be the country’s biggest cash heist in history, although national police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said he would have to check records to ascertain if indeed that is the case.
“Initial indications are that the manner in which the robbery occurred shows an element of an inside job or leakage of information. As investigations intensify, police wish to assure the public that the law will take its course without fear or favour,” said Comm Nyathi.
Police have since widened their scope of investigations to cover other towns and cities where the suspects could be hiding.
“I can’t confirm that a team from Harare has been sent to assist with investigations, but I can say that we have widened our investigations and are no longer just looking for the suspects in Bulawayo. We are exploring all avenues where the suspects could have escaped to and are hiding,” Comm Nyathi said.
Police are said to have interviewed staff from the bank and the Safeguard security team late into the night on Thursday. Some of the biggest cash heists include the 2021 Gwebi River Bridge cash-in-transit robbery on the Harare-Chirundu highway when US$2, 7 million was stolen. A bank employee was later arrested and jailed with his two accomplices after police established that he masterminded the robbery.
Police provided brief descriptions of the Ecobank robbery suspects.
“The accused persons are seven unknown male adults, six of whom were wearing balaclava masks and one was not wearing any mask. One of the accused persons is approximately 1, 65m in height, light in complexion,” said Assistant Inspector Msebele.
Confirmation by police that investigations are still ongoing put to rest speculation on social media that the suspects were shot and killed along Plumtree Road hours after the robbery.
Online Reporter