The Sunday News
Rutendo Nyeve, Online Correspondent
THE community of Irisvale in Ward 18 of Umzingwane District was this Monday morning awakened to the gross brutality of stock thieves who had slaughtered five beasts belonging to a local villager, Mr Miclous Dube.
A tactful team of ten members of the anti-stock theft committee led by the ward councilor Jabulani Makhala managed to apprehend one of the suspects while three others escaped.
In an interview with Sunday News, Clr Makhala confirmed the sad development and narrated how they caught the thieves.
“We had witnessed an increase in stock theft cases in our area hence we immediately tightened our anti-stock theft teams. At around 12 midnight we spotted a white truck entering the village. We then lay in ambush and blocked the road with boulders and any other material that was available
“At around 3am the vehicle approached the ambush point and finding the road closed the perpetrators then fled, fortunately the youths amongst the team managed to capture one of the thieves and the other three escaped. We then took him back to the car for him and we found five slaughtered beasts in the car. We alerted the Police at Esigodini and they responded swiftly bringing in the suspect and vehicle into custody,” said Clr Makhala.
He said upon interviewing the captured suspect he revealed that the gang of thieves was enroute to the high-density suburb of Pumula in Bulawayo.
The perpetrators had managed to slaughter 5 beasts all belonging to Mr Miclous Dube of Stand number 6, Village 8 of Irisvale.
A distraught Mr Dube said he was away in Bulawayo when he got the devastating news from the anti-stock theft committee and had to travel to meet the team at Esigodini Police Station this morning.
“I was away in Bulawayo and received the phone call that told me the sad news this morning. Five of my beasts were slaughtered. This kind of cruelty that these men displayed goes to show that they are heartless human beings who would not hesitate to even kill anyone who stands in their way. I want to thank the police and anti-stock theft committee for its fast reaction,” said Dube. -@nyeve14
