Rudawiro Katsande
Herald correspondent
TWO men who were arrested for stealing 69 tonnes of lithium ore worth US$207 000 from Ruwa have appeared in court on theft charges.
Robert Baiwa (38) and Nigel Tanaka Fransisco appeared before Harare magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa on Wednesday.
The State alleges that the pair connived to steal the lithium ore from a six-hectare property at Plot 5, Cheltenham Park Drive, Ruwa, where 300 tonnes of the mineral had been recovered by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission on September 9, 2026.
During the recovery operation, investigators seized industrial processing equipment, including a jaw crusher plant, a front-end loader, TLB machines, a heavy-duty generator and 20 wheelbarrows, which were allegedly used in the illegal operation.
Investigations revealed that Robert and his brother, Tirivanhu, signed a lease agreement with a Chinese national for the property at US$2 000 per month.
Francisco reportedly found a Chinese buyer identified as Collins, who was working with Esmary Chizengeni, also known as Mai Tadiwa.
On September 22, Collins allegedly sent Chizengeni to the Ruwa premises to assess the quality of the lithium ore that was available, and an agreement was reached to sell the mineral for US$100 per tonne.
Robert was allegedly responsible for arranging the transportation of the ore from the property to Ruwa Industrial Area.
On September 23, Robert allegedly instructed Chizengeni to transport the mineral and requested a deposit of US$800, which was received by Francisco on his behalf.
On September 25, Chizengeni allegedly organised a truck, which transported 32 tonnes of lithium ore from the Ruwa property to Triple A Quarry plant in Domboshava.
Two days later, Chizengeni allegedly paid the outstanding balance for the consignment to Fransisco.
The State further alleges that on October 21, Fransisco sold an additional 37 tonnes of lithium ore to Chizengeni, which was transported to the Atlanta Lithium plant in Goromonzi.
The alleged theft came to light on November 9 when ZACC investigators conducted a routine inspection of the stockpile at the Ruwa property and discovered that some of the lithium ore was missing.
Subsequent investigations allegedly established that 32 tonnes had been delivered to Triple A Quarry plant in Domboshava, while another 37 tonnes had been transported to Atlanta Lithium plant in Goromonzi.
The total quantity allegedly stolen amounted to 69 tonnes, with an estimated official market value of US$207 000.
The two were arrested on November 9 at around 9 pm, with investigations into the matter still ongoing and efforts to locate and recover the missing lithium ore still underway.
