Online Reporter
B-Metro Reporter
A COWDRAY Park man thought he had struck copper gold under the cover of darkness, but instead struck a one way ticket to prison after being caught red handed digging up ZESA cables near an army barracks.
Trust Busani Ncube (44) was slapped with a heavy 10 year jail term by the Tredgold Regional Magistrates Court after his midnight mission left parts of Bulawayo in darkness and the law breathing fire.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ), the theft occurred on 30 November 2025 at around 10pm at an airstrip near Khumalo Barracks. Ncube and his accomplices, who are still on the run, allegedly dug “a trench approximately five metres long and 1.2 metres deep using picks” while targeting underground armoured copper electricity cables belonging to ZETDC.
The NPAZ said the cable cutting stunt “caused disruptions to electricity supply in Khumalo, Paddonhurst and Emhlangeni suburbs, affecting households and essential services,” leaving residents in the dark while the thieves worked up a sweat.
The damage was pegged at US$1 250, but the consequences were far costlier for Ncube, whose luck ran out when soldiers on routine patrol swooped in.
“The offender was apprehended at the scene by members of the Zimbabwe National Army who were conducting routine patrols in the area,” the NPAZ said, adding that his accomplices vanished into the night, leaving him to face the music alone.
The court showed no mercy, warning that cable theft is no joke.
“The destruction of electricity infrastructure is not only an economic crime but a serious threat to public safety and national security,” the NPAZ said.
The cour hammered Ncube with a decade behind bars for tampering with critical national infrastructure under the Electricity Act.
For Ncube, the lights are officially out for the next 10 years.
