Police arrest two over vehicles smuggled through illegal border crossings

Police have arrested two men in separate vehicle smuggling cases on Thursday, 8 October 2026.

Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said Tendai Tarwireyi (47) was arrested in Plumtree by Support Unit officers deployed under the operation “No to Cross-Border Crimes”.

Tarwireyi is accused of smuggling a blue Honda Fit GD1, worth about US$5,000, from Botswana through an illegal crossing point at Driden Farm.

In the second case, Support Unit officers based at Puzani Base in Chikombedzi arrested Michael Chivambo Mahlekete (28). He was wanted for allegedly smuggling a vehicle through an illegal crossing point on the Limpopo River in Beitbridge.

Mahlekete allegedly escaped arrest on 5 October, when police stopped an unregistered red Mitsubishi Colt pick-up towing a white Toyota Corolla Cross, registration number MD59DG GP, worth about US$15,000.