Source: Police recover 43 stolen goats packed in a hired Kombi – herald
Arron Nyamayaro-Herald Reporter
POLICE in Harare on Wednesday intercepted a commuter omnibus with 43 stolen goats along Lorraine Drive, Westgate, in Harare.
Fifteen of the 43 goats had already suffocated due to being crammed.
The driver, Robert Jaisi of Glenwood Park in Epworth, and three accomplices allegedly abandoned the vehicle after they noticed police details that were responding to a tip-off.
The commuter omnibus owners, Pauline Sandra Mahanikwa and her husband Tichawona Marakia Mukutuma, told police that Robert had hired their vehicle, claiming it would be used for a three-day trip to Mutare, and had paid the hiring fee in advance.
Sandra said she met Robert at their offices at Karigamombe Building in Harare where he paid for the vehicle after agreeing to their terms and conditions.
Mukutuma later became suspicious after monitoring the vehicle using a tracking system installed on it.
According to him, the vehicle only moved during the night and travelled along routes near the Zimbabwe–Mozambique border at Mukumbura, Madziva, through Bindura, and eventually back to Harare via Old Mazowe Road.
The kombi stopped along Lorraine Drive near Masaisai School in Harare.
The couple proceeded to the scene, where they found four men inside the vehicle together with goats—some alive and others dead. The four men fled into the nearby bush and disappeared.
Harare provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Luckmore Chakanza, confirmed the matter.
“Police are investigating a stock theft case where a hired vehicle was found with live and dead goats inside,” he said.
He added that preliminary investigations indicate the goats may have been stolen from areas visited by the suspects during the hiring period.
“The total value of the stolen goats is US$1 945,” said Insp Chakanza.
In another incident, Timothy Muvengwa (50) of Hebert Chitepo Secondary School reported the theft of nine goats belonging to the institution in Marimba. The goats were slaughtered a few meters from the school yard.
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