POLICE in South Africa yesterday arrested a 27-year-old Zimbabwean national allegedly caught with 115 units of blasting cartridges and 100 units of explosive accessories.
BY REX MPHISA
The explosives were packed in boxes and hidden inside a truck trailer.
The driver was directed towards the searching bay, where the crime was detected, resulting in the arrest.
“The 27-year-old suspect was arrested in the early hours of today (yesterday), November 19, 2020 at about 1am by the South African Police Service members at Beitbridge Border Post jointly with the Musina Bomb Disposal Unit after he allegedly attempted to smuggle explosives into the country,” Limpopo province police spokesman Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said in a statement.
“The suspect was travelling from Zimbabwe to Alberton in the Gauteng Province. He will soon appear in Musina Magistrate’s Court on charges of possession of explosive materials,” he said.
Police were yet to establish the origins of the explosives, he said.
At the time of going to print, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority which is in charge of the Customs and Excise Department had not yet responded to how the truck loaded with the explosives made it through their electronic scanners, only to be nabbed on the South African side.
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“I am checking with our loss control unit,” Zimra spokesperson Francis Chimanda said.
Zimbabweans have on several occasions been arrested on the South African side of the border with explosives, raising questions about how they would have passed the Zimbabwean side.
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