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Bulawayo senior regional magistrate Mr Owen Tagu convicted Nqobile Victor Mpofu of eight counts of one count of armed robbery, six counts of plain robbery, two counts of theft of motor vehicles, one count of escaping from lawful custody, three counts of unlawful entry and two counts of theft.
Mr Tagu conditionally set aside 30 years of the sentence leaving Mpofu to serve an effective 54 years imprisonment.
Mpofu, was initially arrested in 2006 by CID Vehicle Theft Squad in Bulawayo but he escaped from police cells at Bulawayo Central Police Station.
He was re-arrested in 2009 by CID Homicide after a shoot-out.
On May 27 2004 he pounced on Mr Innocent Jekenya of Hillcrest in Bulawayo and stole a Nissan Sunny HB12.
Around the same period, Mpofu stole another Nissan Sunny vehicle belonging to Mr Antony Clough at Number 3 Housman Road, Malindela.
Between February 26 and 27, Mpofu who was detained at Bulawayo Central Police Station, escaped and went on to commit further offences.
From May 2006 to November 23 2006 Mpofu robbed two Bulawayo families of two vehicles and household property at knifepoint.
In 2007, Mpofu threatened four more families in Bulawayo suburbs with a small axe and made off with three vehicles and property worth thousands of dollars.
On most incidents, Mpofu would threaten the property owners, tie them with ropes and load the loot into the stolen vehicles before driving off.
The same year, Mpofu armed with a double barrel shotgun, pounced on Ms Irene Mornach of Morningside in the city and robbed her of a box full of fishing equipment, television sets, gas cylinders, groceries and many others.
Online Reporter