Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya
Beitbridge Bureau
The trial of a Beitbridge man who was recently arrested while in possession of an Audi A4 that was stolen in South Africa and smuggled into Zimbabwe via the Limpopo River has been postponed to October 7 pending further investigations.
Prosper Mafuta was arrested in the Mabidi suburb when local detectives tracked the stolen vehicle to his place in Beitbridge town.
The car was stolen in South Africa on September 7 before being smuggled into Zimbabwe and fixed with fake registration numbers to conceal the crime.
Mafuta was not asked to plead to the charges when he appeared before Beitbridge regional magistrate Ms Charity Maphosa, charged with theft of a motor vehicle on Wednesday.
The man was initially remanded in custody before being granted US$300 bail pending trial.
Mafuta was ordered to surrender his passport to the court, continue residing at his given address and report once every Wednesday at CID Beitbridge as part of the bail conditions.
Prosecuting, Mr Willbrought Muleya alleged that on September 8 this year, CID detectives from Beitbridge received a tip-off about the stolen car, which had a tracker, and been smuggled into the country.
They followed up on the information and proceeded to Mabidi suburb, where they located the South African-registered Audi A4 and arrested Mafuta.
Further investigations revealed that the car, worth thousands of dollars, had been reported stolen in South Africa.
It was also discovered that the vehicle had been affixed with fake registration number plates to conceal the crime.
The smuggling of stolen vehicles has become rampant around the border and the Government is losing millions of dollars in import revenue annually.
Indications are that most of these cars are stolen from rental cars in South Africa while thefts are orchestrated by insurance fraud syndicates in that country.
On insurance fraud, the vehicles are clandestinely sold and smuggled out of South Africa, after which their owners, working with syndicates, then report them stolen and claim insurance money.
