National

Hwange man jailed nine years for possession of ivory

Published

3 years ago

September 2, 2022

BY NOTHANDO DUBE

A Hwange man has been jailed for nine years after he was found trying to find buyers of raw ivory in the coal mining town.

Jimstone Regiment (30) from Ingagula was arrested on April 22 this year outside OK Supermarket in the twom centre.

Prosecutor Jamesina Makanza told Hwange provincial magistrate Tomupei Zhou that on the day Regiment was arrested, detectives from the police’s Minerals Flora and Fauna Unit received information that he was in possession of ivory.

He was using a Toyota Gaia vehicle.

A team comprising of police officers and Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority went on a surveillance mission around Hwange and spotted Regiment with his accomplices near Ok Supermarket.

He was found seated at the back seat of the vehicle with a bag and his co-accused Brighton Sangumbwa (32) was behind the steering wheel.

One piece of ivory was found in Regiment’s bag and another two pieces were behind the rear seat of the vehicle.

The two were asked to produce a permit for the possession of ivory, but they failed to do so, leading to their arrest.

The ivory weighed 2.295 kilogrammes and valued at US$390.

Regiment pleaded not guilty to the charges and claimed that on the day in question he was asked by a friend, he only referred to as Matters, to deliver a parcel at the OK Supermarket as he was going out of town.

He said he was told that he would hand over the parcel to a man identified as Rodrick and he never bothered to check what was in the bag.

Regiment claimed that he boarded the Toyota Gaia vehicle, which parked outside the OK Supermarket.

He said he was surprised that Rodrick was a police officer and that he had been trapped.

Regiment insisted that set up by state agents.

On the hand, Sangumbwa told the courts that he had been hired by Regiment and did not know that he was carrying ivory.

“I was contacted by the accused who is his brother’s tenant at Ingagula for transport services in exchange for five litres of fuel,” Sangumbwa said.

“I then drove him to OK Supermarket as he indicated that he needed to meet someone from Bulawayo, who was already waiting at the place.

“He then disembarked for a few minutes and came back to sit at the back seat, and moments after, a police officer who identified himself as detective Constable Nkala came to our car and stated that we were under arrest for possessing ivory without a permit.”

At the end of the trial, Zhou convicted Regiment and handed him the mandatory nine year jail sentence the unlawful possession of raw ivory in contravention of section 82(1) of the Parks and Wildlife (General Regulation SI 362/1990) as read with section 128 of the Parks and Wildlife Act (Chapter 20:14).

National

Ranger killed by elephant in Kariba

Published

3 weeks ago

March 14, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A 62-year-old ranger, Josphat Mandishara, was tragically killed by an elephant in Kariba yesterday.

Mandishara, who worked for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), was on patrol in the Gatche-gatche area with fellow rangers and police officers.

At around 10 pm, Mandishara returned to the harbor where their boat was docked, and that’s when he encountered the elephant. The elephant charged at him, causing fatal injuries. His colleagues were nearby, resupplying at the Gatche-gatche Irrigation Scheme.

Mandishara’s body was taken to Kariba District Hospital for a post-mortem, and the incident was reported to the police.

ZimParks has sent a team to manage the problem elephant and prevent similar incidents in the future.

The Director General of ZimParks, Prof. Edson Gandiwa, and his team have sent condolences to Mandishara’s family, friends, and colleagues. Mandishara will be remembered for his dedication to wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe.

National

ZIMRA customs officer appears in court for criminal abuse of office

Published

2 months ago

February 3, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) customs officer, Phillip Kuvenga, has been accused of criminal abuse of office for allegedly assisting in the importation of banned motor vehicles.

Kuvenga, 28, who is stationed at Victoria Falls, allegedly received documents from clients, completed valuation sheets, and carried out the valuation process. However, he is accused of endorsing different chassis numbers to deceive his supervisors during the validation and approval process.

After obtaining approval, Kuvenga would capture the correct chassis numbers in the ASYCUDA World System. He would then alter or replace the documents submitted earlier to his supervisors.

The offense came to light when a motor vehicle that had not yet arrived in Zimbabwe was found to have been already registered. A thorough check by ZIMRA led to Kuvenga’s arrest.

Kuvenga appeared in court on February 1, where he was denied bail by Magistrate Gift Manyka. He is expected to appear in court again today for another bail hearing.

National

Retailers send Mnangagwa SOS as shops continue shutting down over operational woes

Published

2 months ago

January 27, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY ZIMLIVE

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) has implored President Emmerson Mnangagwa to intervene and save the sector which has seen various formal retail and wholesale businesses closing shop countrywide due to operational challenges.

In a statement on Sunday, CZR president Denford Mutashu said the continued closure of formal retail and wholesale businesses is a direct consequence of the tough economic environment that has consistently failed to support formalised sector players who face stiff competition from informal businesses and vendors the majority of whom have no tax obligations to deal with.

Mutashu said his association was concerned that authorities continue to downplay the crisis.

“The recent closure of several outlets under the N. Richards Group, coupled with Spar Zimbabwe’s painful decision to shut down Queensdale Spar, Choppies Zimbabwe’s exit from the market, and Mahommed Mussa’s significant reduction of shop space by 60%, highlights the growing crisis.

“As the representative association for these and other brands, CZR is alarmed that while formal businesses face enormous challenges, the authorities continue to present a different picture of the operating environment,” he said.

Given the situation, Mutashu said, only President Mnangagwa can rescue the troubled sector.

“CZR therefore calls for urgent intervention from His Excellency, President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, to rescue what remains of the formalized retail and wholesale sector,” said Mutashu.

He said the sector was in urgent need of rescue.

“While CZR acknowledges the continued support from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, it is clear that the root causes of these challenges are fiscal and monetary in nature. These require urgent and decisive action to ensure the survival of formal businesses.

“CZR therefore appeals to the Presidium to prioritize interventions aimed at saving jobs and mitigating the ongoing wave of shop closures and retrenchments,” he said.