Ex-members of security forces terrorise SADC

up with
other friends who were also retired at the end of the Congo war and jumped
the border into Botswana, hoping to find new jobs as security guards.

Two months latter, Chikomo’s bullet-riddled body arrived in Plumtree for
burial with news that he had been surprised during a bank robbery and shot
dead by a unit of the Botswana Police Services. The police were reported to
be on the trail of the other members, but public warnings had been
circulated in advance that all were ex-members of the army and were
dangerous.

The robbery case was just one of several allegedly committed by serving or
retired members of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) in the region in recent
years.

Police in Botswana have generally complained of Zimbabweans being behind an
upsurge in the crime wave.

But it is South Africa that has borne the brunt of the sophisticated, well
organized daring raids that seem to go for large casinos takings, huge
amounts of cash on transit and expensive jewellery.

A senior police detective in the Serious and Violent Crimes Unit told AND
that they were under no illusions that serving or retired elements of the
Zimbabwean military were active in crime scenes across the country. He said
their trademark was their targets, high organization in terms of transport,
arms, the very short time taken to rob the targets and the fact that they
are careful enough not to injure any of their victims.

“Like all foreigners here, Zimbabweans have been into all sorts of crime
since they started coming here. But this new breed of robber is a smart guy
who goes for big heists, like casinos, large sums in transit or expensive
jewellery.

“We only woke up to the fact that we could be facing seasoned soldiers when
we arrested a cash-in-transit gang in the West Rand in late 2004. Many of
them turned out to be ex-soldiers and thereafter, similar catches were made
in connection with casinos hits in Limpopo and Kwa-Zulu Natal. Since then,
there have been more cases where former Zimbabwean soldiers crop up in
connection with carjackings, bank robberies and other hold-ups,” said the
detective, who declined to be named.

Although the South African Police Services (SAPS) declined to comment to
avoid compromising on-going investigations, senior detectives at Polokwane
told AND that the highly organized robbery of remote casinos in the province
late last year was the work of a highly organized and militarily disciplined
15-20 member gang that carries AK 47s as standard weapons.

“These people bring all they need in transport, always strike at the right
time and will get away without firing a single shot if not challenged. Once
they leave, the crime scene, they disappear into thin air. Which is why we
think we are dealing with a gang that comes occasionally to strike it big
and go back to spend. They have not been arrested and the 15 member gang
that started hitting out Wild Coast casinos last month fits their
description,” said the detective.

While South Africa has an abundance of illegal weapons, police detectives
still believe that the widespread use of the AK47 points to the Zimbabwe
security establishment as it is the standard weapon issue for the forces
there. Military-style raids on banks and cash-in-transit vans still remain a
problem throughout South Africa, indicating that many gangs are still
active.

Although South African police believe the gangs are inter-linked, interviews
carried out with serving and retired members of the Zimbabwe National Army
(ZNA) point to independent operations in which one gang may not even know
about the other.

“The situation is a result of conditions in the army. The low pay, low
morale and the fact that juniors have been watching officers feathering
their nests illegally since the DRC conflict has contributed in a big way to
crime in the service. So we now have retired and serving members who form
themselves into groups that go around robbing for cash and anything that can
be sold expensively.”

“It is true that some of these people are now part of the crime wave in
South Africa, but they are not an organized syndicate. These are small
groups who go in to make a raid and dash back,” said the officer. He said it
was highly unlikely that the 15-20 member gang that is still on the loose
was made up of ex-Zimbabwean forces as SA police suspect.

The ZNA public relations department said it would only respond after making
its own investigations. Opposition MDC shadow defence minister Job Sikhala,
who also sits on the parliamentary portfolio for defence, told AND that
there was no doubt that elements of the security forces were into crime
across the region. – Andnetwork.com