A DARING 20-year-old Chiredzi man recently appeared at the Beitbridge Magistrates’ Court charged with breaking and stealing property from police officers’ vehicles.
BY SILAS NKALA
The suspect, Dean Dhlela, was also charged with stealing a pistol from Chiredzi, which he was found in possession of.
Dhlela pleaded not guilty to three counts of theft and one count of illegal possession of a firearm when he appeared before magistrate Langton Mkwengi.
He was remanded in custody to Friday.
It is the State’s allegation that on April 22 this year at 9pm, one of the complainants, Ruvimbo Munyaradzi Maromo of Limpopo View, parked his car, a Toyota Harrier, at Beitbridge Border Post, leaving the driver’s door unlocked.
At 11pm, he returned and discovered that his money amounting to R30, company identification card and driver’s licence had been stolen.
On May 4 this year, detectives from the Criminal Investigation Department received information to the effect that Dhlela was the suspect in the matter. They then visited his home where they conducted a search and recovered Maromo’s property worth $70.
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In another incident, on April 27 this year at 11:30pm, a police officer, Musiliwa Dewah, parked his car, a Toyota Ipsum, inside the police residential camp and Dhlela allegedly broke into the vehicle and stole a mobile phone and a jacket.
Dewah discovered the theft the following day and reported the matter to the police. However, during the search police officers recovered the stolen property worth $45.
As if that was not enough, on April 27 this year, another police officer, Nyashadzashe Moyo, parked her car in the camp before retiring to bed when Dhlela allegedly approached the vehicle during the night and stole her passport, a South African temporary import permit and other goods worth $85.
Moyo is said to have discovered the offence the following morning and reported the matter to the police and the stolen items were also recovered during a search.
In a separate case, but in April this year, Dhlela is said to have acquired a Beretta pistol with 17 rounds of ammunition. The firearm had allegedly been stolen in Chiredzi. Prosecutor Munyonga Kuvarega appeared for the State.
