Suspected armed robbers, gold dealers in court

TWO suspected armed robbers have been arraigned before a Bulawayo court on charges of illegal possession of gold worth US$37 338.

Robson Chatikobo (35) and Brezhnev Maposa (37) appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Franklin Mkhwananzi last week and were remanded in custody to July 26.
The court heard that the pair had several pending cases of armed robbery.

The two were apprehended at Highlanders Clubhouse, where they attempted to get a buyer for 889 grammes of gold, valued at US$37 338, without a license.
Prosecutor Nkathozo Dlodlo told the court that on July 10, police officers apprehended the accused at Highlanders Clubhouse, where they were looking for a buyer.

"From Maposa, the detectives recovered 889gr of gold, US$810, R1 000, ZWL$681, while from Chatikobo they recovered US$631, ZWL$142 and two cellphones. The two failed to produce mining documentation for the gold they were carrying," Dlodlo said.

Dlodlo further told the court that on April 13, Maposa, Witness Hlongwane, and three other unidentified suspects broke into a house in Tshabalala.

He said the five-men gang, which was armed with machetes, knives and pistols, demanded money from the family.