A 40-year-old Zimbabwean man, Luckmore Harunashe, was on Friday sentenced to 15 years behind bars for possession of commercial explosives by the Musina regional court in South Africa.
TimesLive reported Hawks spokesperson Capt Matimba Maluleke as saying Harunashe and Zorodzai Ignatius Mukonzamariro (31) were arrested on the N1 between Musina and Makhado in September 2022.
Maluleke said the Beitbridge police task team was tipped off about a blue Toyota Condor transporting explosives. Said Maluleke:
The task team members immediately reacted and the suspicious vehicle with two occupants was spotted, stopped and searched.
On searching the vehicle, police found commercial explosives including 247 blasting cartridges, 1 250 connector-capped fuses and seven detonating fuses valued at R70 000.
Harunashe and Mukonzamariro, who was driving, were arrested and their case was transferred to the Hawks. Added Maluleke:
The accused weren’t granted bail. During their trial, the court heard that Harunashe hired a vehicle driven by Mukonzamariro to transport his explosives from Zimbabwe to South Africa without a permit.
Apart from the 15 years of direct imprisonment that was imposed on Harunashe, he was also sentenced to six months imprisonment or an R20 000 fine for entering South Africa without a valid passport.
Mukonzamariro was sentenced to six months in jail, with the option of an R20 000 fine, for entering South Africa without a valid passport.