Police have intensified a crackdown against smugglers, targeting bus crews and passengers involved in smuggling drugs and other illicit substances.
This comes after it emerged that bus crews are conniving with passengers to smuggle drugs, mostly mbanje, into the country.
Thus the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) is conducting stop and searches at most roadblocks, especially along the highways.
In a statement, national police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the operation code-named, "No to Border Crimes" was continuing until there is sanity.
"On September 27, 2024, members of the police deployed on operation, 'No to Cross Border Crimes,' in Beitbridge acted on received information and arrested Melusi Ngwenya aged 26 at Dulibadzimu Bus terminus for illegal possession of 16 kilogrammes of mbanje.
"The mbanje was stashed under packets of chicken cuts inside a cardboard box," he said.
Meanwhile, on September 29, 2024 at around 0315 hours, police in Featherstone intercepted a Nissan Note vehicle, registration number AGQ 2446, at a security checkpoint at the 103-kilometre peg along Harare-Masvingo Road and arrested the driver, Tinashe Muronzi (37) and passenger, Anacleter Sibanda (33) for unlawful possession of six plastic bags of mbanje.
Last week, police in Masvingo arrested two members of a Beitbridge-bound bus crew and two passengers after impounding 62kg of mbanje.
Police allegedly searched the bus and recovered six bags containing 28 rolled packets of dagga that were hidden in the chassis.
Mafo was arrested and the bus was ordered to drive to Masvingo Central Police Station.
Further searches in the bus at the police station led to the recovery of a black satchel from a female passenger, Paulina Mudakuvaka (36) of Ruwa, Harare, that contained several packets of mbanje.
During the search, police also recovered four rolls of dagga from a black plastic bag belonging to another female passenger, Alice Mutanda (68) of Glen View, Harare.
Police also arrested the bus conductor, Allen Mberikunashe (25) of Victoria Ranch suburb in Masvingo, in connection with the mbanje haul.
