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Andile Tshuma, Sunday News Reporter
BULAWAYO’S Central Business District (CBD) has been rocked by a syndicate of thieves some of whom are working with street children who snatch women’s wigs, while others masquerade as pirate taxi operators targeting women with authentic human hair wigs.
The snatching of wigs is not a new phenomenon as it was first reported in the capital, Harare and has now spread to Bulawayo. Wigs have become popular among women over the past years as they save them from hours of salon appointments where they have to sit while their hair is being done.
For some women, wigs allow them the best of both worlds, to maintain their natural hair while having alternative silky straight hair without having to apply any chemical relaxers on hair. However, many women are now living in fear of losing their precious hair accessories to thieves who mainly operate downtown in the city centre.
Some women say the hair thieves are mostly made up of children living in the streets popularly referred to as street kids, which makes it difficult for people to mete out instant justice as the assumption is that street kids are just naughty.
However, the children are said to be working in cahoots with a syndicate of thieves who then deal with hairdressers at various salons who revamp the wigs for resale. Depending on the length, and the grade of hair, Brazilian and Peruvian wigs can cost anything between US$50 and up to US$500 for the most common hair types in the market with some high-end shops having the hair at some prices beyond US$500.
Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Abednigo Ncube confirmed a recent case of a city woman who recently lost her Brazilian wig and US$250 to wig snatchers masquerading as mshikashika operators.
“Police in Bulawayo would like to warn members of the public against boarding pirate taxis commonly known as mshikashika. We are receiving numerous reports of robberies perpetrated by such crews. The latest report that we received is of a women aged 36 from Emganwini suburb which happened on January 29, 2023.
She boarded a silver Honda Fit near a church along Plumtree Road in Emganwini in the morning intending to get into the CBD. She was kidnapped, drugged and later dumped about 500 metres from where she had boarded the Honda Fit. When she came to her senses two hours later, she discovered that she had lost US$250, a Brazilian wig, a pair of white three leaves shoes. The case is being investigated by Nkulumane Police Station.
We urge the public to seriously consider their safety and not board pirate taxis, especially if they have suspicious occupants,” said Insp Ncube.
Sunday News visited some hair parlours in the city and some women confirmed that wig snatchers were on the prowl. A stylist at a local hair parlour, Nomvelo Ndlovu said there was high demand for “real human hair” and said most of the patrons at the parlour were high end clients.
“We sell brand new authentic hair wigs that rage from Peruvian, Brazilian, Malaysian hair or whatever hair type that the client needs. We have heard of the growing issues of wigs snatching and this has been a worry to some of our clients. However, we are finding innovative ways to ensure that our wigs are more secure with more elastic bands to make snatching difficult,” she said.
Another worker at a different hair parlour at the Bulawayo Centre, Tariro Nyirenda, said most of her clients now preferred wig installations, which is a process of gluing wigs to the scalp as it would be more secure and safer from thieves.
However, she said there was risk of injury and scalp damage if a lot of force was exerted when someone tries to snatch a wig glued to the scalp and said one of her clients had been a victim to thieves.
“One of my clients was just leaving a club along George Silundika Street one evening when the wig snatchers pounced on her. Luckily, she had done a wig installation and they could not get away with her wig but all the friction from the pulling damaged her entire hairline and scalp at the temples. I hope she eventually recovers and that hair regrows,” she said.
Despite the imminent danger of losing wigs to thieves, hair parlours are recording brisk business as women feel that wigs are gentler on their hairlines.
“Business has been great since the festive season and we are getting more clients now. We have actually started selling second hand wigs that we buy from clients who no longer need them and then we refurbish them and sell with a markup,” said a hairdresser who only identified himself as Davis.
The wig stylist said the bob wig was the best seller as it was versatile, more affordable and required minimum care. A city hair dealer who trades in preloved or second hair wigs said he never cared where the hair comes from but pays whoever sells him wigs for resale. He said some people have sold him assorted preloved wigs claiming that they had ordered a bale of second-hand wigs from South Africa.
“I’m not bothered where the hair is coming from, as long as I do not steal, but I pay my suppliers. The source of the hair is their business, not mine,” said the dealer who declined to be identified. – @andile_tshuma.
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