Zimbabwe: Two companies from Harare lost US $16,700 to unknown robbers in just two days. The theft cases targeted companies and homes, and the number continues to rise.
As per the sources, in the first incident, four unknown male suspects with black masks on their faces and gloves on were armed with pistols and pounced on a company in Avondale, Harare. They attacked a security guard, after which they broke three safes, stole US $11,300 and fled away.
According to the police statement, the investigation is underway. It was also reported that the robbery occurred at a company along Churchill Road on Tuesday. The police said that the suspects locked the victim in one of the offices and went away.
The second incident of theft happened on Wednesday in which fifteen unidentified suspected males wearing face masks similarly pounced on a service station in Southlea Park along Simon Mazorodze Road and attacked two fuel attendants around 1:00 a.m. before entering a shop where they also attacked six occupants who were sleeping.
Considering the case, the police stated that the suspects blasted a safe and stole US $5,400 cash and urged the public to report any information found to the nearest police station.
Reportedly, the police in Southlea Park, Harare, are now investigating the case of robbery.
As per the Zimbabwean police reports, cases where robbers are pouncing on homes and businesses and are getting away with large sums of cash are on the rise.
The cops have been urging businesses and families not to keep huge sums of money at home but to use the formal banking system to avoid such incidences of robbery.
Notably, some companies and individuals are now treating money as a commodity so that they can sell it on the parallel market for profit. The drive to open bank accounts and deposit money is fading.
Moreover, police established that some of the cases are being internally investigated, mainly by security guards and domestic workers, who leak information to robbers.