Published by the government of Zimbabwe
10 July 2009
Harare — A 25-YEAR-OLD Zimbabwean man was on Monday jailed for six months by a Mussina magistrate in the Limpopo province of South Africa for smuggling a consignment of cigarettes worth R30 000 through Beitbridge Border Post.
Anyway Murwarwi of Harare was convicted on his own plea of guilt to charges of smuggling. He was sentenced to an effective six months' imprisonment with an option to pay a R5 000 fine.
It is the State's case that on June 30 this year, Murwarwi smuggled a consignment of cigarettes in a Toyota Hilux through Beitbridge Border Post. He was, however, intercepted by police following a tip-off along the N1 highway while driving from Mussina towards Johannesburg.
A search of his vehicle was conducted leading to the discovery of the contraband. The accused was subsequently arrested and the cigarettes were confiscated.
The smuggling of cigarettes out of the country through Beitbridge Border Post is rampant despite the installation of scanners by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority at Beitbridge Border Post. The scanners are also able to detect concealed goods in sealed containers.
Last year, the South African Revenue Services destroyed more than 1 500 boxes of cigarettes worth over R1,5 million.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 The Herald. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
