GWERU
–
Former
Gweru
councillor
and
Midlands
Zanu
PF
stalwart
Charles
Simbi’s
son
and
a
relative
have
been
arraigned
before
the
Gweru
Magistrate
Courts
facing
armed
robbery
charges
along
with
five
others.
Nyasha
Osward
Simbi,
27,
of
Southview
in
Gweru
and
a
relative,
Alex
Simbi,
42,
of
Mkoba
6
in
Gweru,
are
employed
at
Thunderbird
42
Mine,
operated
by
Charles,
56.
Charles,
a
losing
Zanu
PF
candidate
for
the
Mkoba
parliamentary
seat,
also
has
a
pending
fraud
case,
where
he
allegedly
forged
land
ownership
papers
using
his
wife
Zodwa
Thembinkosi
in
a
bid
to
seize
mining
claims
at
a
farm
just
outside
Gweru.
The
two,
Nyasha
and
Alex,
are
allegedly
part
of
a
seven-man
gang
that
robbed
individuals
at
nearby
MT
Mine
on
February
8,
2025,
at
approximately
3AM
using
a
pistol,
machetes,
and
knobkerries
while
demanding
cash
and
gold.
The
other
five
suspects
are
Kimton
Sibanda,
25,
and
Samu
Sibanda,
24,
both
from
Beneti
Village
in
Lower
Gwelo
under
Chief
Sogwala;
Takudzwa
Nyoni,
33,
of
Cowdray
Park
in
Bulawayo;
Hercluse
Nhongo,
29,
of
Clifton
Park
in
Gweru;
and
Bright
Ndlovu,
43,
from
Malamulela
Village
under
Chief
Nduku
in
Zhombe.
They
were
arrested
by
police
a
day
after
the
robbery
on
February
9,
2025.
Court
papers
seen
by
ZimLive
show
that
the
seven
are
facing
two
counts
of
armed
robbery
and
one
count
of
assault.
The
National
Prosecuting
Authority
alleges
that
the
gang
arrived
at
MT
Mine
and
threatened
Shepherd
Kutse
and
Norman
Mahlani
with
knobkerries
and
a
pistol,
and
further
assaulted
them
with
machetes
all
over
their
bodies
demanding
cash
and
gold.
“They
went
on
to
take
a
Samsung
A33
cellphone
(from
Kutse)
and
a
Samsung
S23
(from
Mahlani),”
read
the
court
papers.
On
the
third
count,
the
seven
are
facing
assault
charges
as
defined
in
Section
89
of
the
Criminal
Law
and
Reform
Act,
Chapter
9:23.
“One
or
more
of
them
assaulted
Stephen
Ndlovu
with
machetes
and
knobkerries,
demanding
cash
and
gold.
The
complainant
managed
to
escape.
The
complainant
sustained
a
cut
on
the
left
leg,”
the
NPA
alleges.
The
gang
was
positively
identified
by
witnesses
and
the
complainants.
The
accused
were
remanded
in
custody
to
February
25,
2025,
and
are
being
represented
by
lawyer
Esau
Mandipa
of
Mandipa,
Makwara,
and
Chikukwa
Legal
Practitioners.