Online Reporter
Prosper Dembedza
Online Correspondent
Harare Regional Magistrate Ms Christine Nyandoro has cancelled a warrant of arrest issued on Tuesday against two cocaine smugglers after they failed to show up at court.
The two had failed to appear in court, having assumed that the courts were not in session because it was a public holiday.
Luke Gilmore (40) and Tafadzwa Mutsikira (42) are facing charges of unlawful possession of dangerous drugs.
The court heard that, on a date unknown to the prosecutor, the two accused persons connived and smuggled dangerous drugs, namely cocaine, ecstasy, dagga and magic mushrooms, into the country and started selling them in Harare.
On June 19, 2026, detectives from CID Drugs Harare received information about their activities and set up surveillance.
They then followed Gilmore, who was driving a grey Nissan Hardbody pickup, registration number AEX6498, to Adelaide Close, Highlands, Harare.
They then stopped him, identified themselves and searched him, leading to the seizure of three transparent sachets of cocaine from the right pocket of his shorts.
Further searches of his vehicle led to the recovery of a greenish bag containing a sachet of dagga, a transparent big sachet with cocaine, another sachet with 23 blue tablets of ecstasy, a sachet with 14 blue tablets of ecstasy, a big sachet with magic mushroom, 14 empty plastic packaging and a small digital scale.
Gilmore was arrested and taken to his house, where further searches were conducted and three plastic sachets with whitish traces of cocaine were found on the table in the dining room.
WhiIe the detectives were at Gilmore’s house, Mutsikira came for resupply. He was searched and a sachet containing 20 blue tablets of ecstasy was recovered from his right trouser pocket.
The two accused persons were escorted to CID Drugs and Narcotics Harare, where preliminary field tests were done on the suspected whitish substance, and it tested positive to cocaine, while the tablets tested positive for ecstasy.
‘The drugs were also weighed in the presence of accused persons and the cocaine weighed 15 grammes while dagga weighed 10 grammes. Dangerous drugs recovered from Gilmore had a total street value of US$2 455.
Mrs Heather Muokoto represented the State.
