South African arrested for smuggling

Border control and minerals unit officers intercepted the contraband stashed in the arm rest compartment of Collin Kenneth Farmer’s vehicle, an Isuzu KB 300.
Farmer (54) had received the gold from Herylaas Philippus Barnard (42) and Lara Bridget Mills (31) who are holders of a mining licence. He is being charged for contravening Section 3(1) of the Gold Trade Act, for allegedly possessing gold without a licence while Barnard and Mills are facing charges for contravening Section 30(1) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, for allegedly dealing with an unauthorised person.

The three were not formally charged when they appeared before Harare Magistrate Mr Tendai Mahwe.
Farmer was remanded in custody to today for plea recording in court 5. The court, however, remanded Barnard and Mills out of custody to August 8 on $1 000 bail apiece.

As part of their bail conditions, the duo was ordered to surrender title deeds of their Bluff Hill offices as surety, to surrender their passports and to report once a week to the police.
Prosecutor Mr Tungamirai Chakurira alleges that on July 16 this year, in Bluff Hill, Barnard gave Mills four buttons of gold weighing 1,7kg worth $79 806 for her to give to Farmer. Mills acting on Barnard’s instructions handed the gold to farmer, it is alleged.

It is alleged that on July 22 detectives from Border Control and Minerals Unit received a tip-off from their sources that Farmer was in possession of gold. Following the tip-off, the detectives intercepted Farmer at the Crest Breeders toll-gate along the Harare-Masvingo highway while in transit to South Africa.

They searched his vehicle and found the gold stashed in the arm rest compartment of his car and was wrapped in a mutton cloth, it is alleged. It is the State’s case that Farmer failed to give an answer as to why he was in possession of the precious mineral without a licence.

He was subsequently arrested and he later implicated Barnard and Mills. Mr Cathew Manyani of T.H Chitapi and Associates is representing the trio.