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Beitbridge bus robbers jailed 84 years each
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Two armed robbers who terrorized passengers on a Beitbridge-bound bus in July have each been sentenced to an effective 84 years in prison by the Chiredzi regional court. Ashton Siziba (26) of Peterwen, Mkwasine, Chiredzi, and Phinias Shumba (25) of Dryhoek, Makhado in Beitbridge were convicted of robbing over 40 passengers of more than US$8,600 and R62,000 on a Blue Circle bus in the early hours of July 18.
Regional magistrate Ms. Judith Zuyu handed down the sentences following a full trial, citing overwhelming evidence against the two men. The robbery, which took place near the 120-kilometer peg on the Masvingo-Beitbridge highway, involved four assailants. Siziba and Shumba posed as regular passengers along with two other accomplices. One accomplice, Sauro Dadirayi (23), is already serving his sentence after a separate trial, while the second remains at large.
According to prosecutor Ms. Tanyaradzwa Tinago, the incident began when the four men boarded the Blue Circle bus in Harare on July 17, joining 51 other passengers. Around 2:30 a.m. the next day, Siziba signaled to the bus driver, Mr. Alex Takadiyi, indicating that he and his accomplices had reached their destination. When the bus stopped, Siziba brandished a black pistol, ordering the conductor, Taurai Mazvimba, back onto the bus. Shumba, Dadirayi, and their fourth accomplice produced okapi knives, directing the driver to drive into the nearby bush and turn off the lights.
The gang then proceeded to rob 31 of the passengers on board. Male passengers were ordered to lie down on their stomachs while female passengers were escorted off the bus. The assailants then fled in a waiting vehicle toward Beitbridge.
Siziba, Shumba, and Dadirayi were apprehended after police tracked them down to Mapurisa Business Centre in Maranda, where investigators recovered cash and the pistol used in the crime.
Regional magistrate Ms. Judith Zuyu handed down the sentences following a full trial, citing overwhelming evidence against the two men. The robbery, which took place near the 120-kilometer peg on the Masvingo-Beitbridge highway, involved four assailants. Siziba and Shumba posed as regular passengers along with two other accomplices. One accomplice, Sauro Dadirayi (23), is already serving his sentence after a separate trial, while the second remains at large.
According to prosecutor Ms. Tanyaradzwa Tinago, the incident began when the four men boarded the Blue Circle bus in Harare on July 17, joining 51 other passengers. Around 2:30 a.m. the next day, Siziba signaled to the bus driver, Mr. Alex Takadiyi, indicating that he and his accomplices had reached their destination. When the bus stopped, Siziba brandished a black pistol, ordering the conductor, Taurai Mazvimba, back onto the bus. Shumba, Dadirayi, and their fourth accomplice produced okapi knives, directing the driver to drive into the nearby bush and turn off the lights.
The gang then proceeded to rob 31 of the passengers on board. Male passengers were ordered to lie down on their stomachs while female passengers were escorted off the bus. The assailants then fled in a waiting vehicle toward Beitbridge.
Siziba, Shumba, and Dadirayi were apprehended after police tracked them down to Mapurisa Business Centre in Maranda, where investigators recovered cash and the pistol used in the crime.
Source - The Herald
