BULAWAYO – Four men appeared in court Tuesday accused of robbing a Bulawayo mining equipment supplier at knife and gunpoint on March 11.
Shepherd Samson Moyo, 27, Peter Mare, 28, Zenzo Mhambi, 37, and Bruce Ephraim Makara, 29, were not asked to plead when they appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Joseph Mabeza charged with armed robbery.
They were remanded in custody to March 28 and advised to apply for bail at the High Court.
A fifth suspect, Japhet Mupunga, is on the run, the court heard.
Nkazimulo Xaba, for the prosecution, told the court that the five men drove to Fideliquip on Fife Street and 13th Avenue in a silver Honda Fit with false number plate ACD 4509 imposed on the vehicle’s proper registration, ACJ 2538. They had been provided information on the company’s financial transactions by Makara, who works as a workshop manager at Ball Joint Centre situated close to Fideliquip.
The court heard that at about 5.45PM, with a pistol and a knife drawn, Moyo, Mare, Mhambi and Mupunga proceeded to the Fideliquip entrance leaving Mare outside as a lookout.
Once inside, the trio accosted two Fideliquip employees Shepherd Mudondo and Alfred Ndudzo demanding cash.
Mhambi, according to the National Prosecuting Authority, stabbed Ndudzo once below the right buttock.
Ndudzo and Mudondo surrendered a black bag with cash amounting to US$2,797, an Itel mobile phone, two Samsung J6 plus phones, a Gtel Infinity phone and an Itel tablet.
“When the accused demanded more money, Ndudzo indicated that there was some cash hidden in the company toilet that amounted to US$800 and after collecting it, they tied up the complainants using cable ties and locked them in the toilet,” Xaba said.
Ndudzo and Mudondo managed to free themselves and called police.
Detectives arrested Moyo and Mare who were still using the gateway car and recovered US$800. Mhambi was later arrested and US$470 was recovered as well as one Samsung J6 plus.
