The Sunday News
Simba Jemwa, Sunday News Correspondent
THEY are known as mechanical specialists in and around Emganwini in Bulawayo.
But instead of just fixing cars, Lloyd Moyo (21) and his partner Pride Ndebele (31) from Emganwini are allegedly stripping the cars and selling assorted parts. And they are using the money for drugs and booze, sources said.
However, they are now so deep in the drug problem and in debt, and they are asking their families to help them get rehabilitated. Moyo’s uncle, Melusi Gumede (39), told Sunday News that the duo started by replacing the original car parts with old and rusty ones.
“The owners would be furious and these two would promise to have them fixed, claiming it was a mistake,” he said.
This was in March 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown. He said things quickly escalated and they started stripping cars and using the money for drugs and alcohol. Gumede revealed that a local prophet told their family what Lloyd was up to.
When he warned Lloyd to stop, he denied doing anything wrong. Gumede said things got so bad that car owners started threatening their lives and those of their families.
“Lloyd was called Ngamla because of how recklessly he was blowing money. In December alone we hear they spent thousands of dollars on booze and drugs. They were generous and buying beers for everyone,” said Gumede.
He said they once sold someone’s car for R8 000 and used that money for drugs.
“Right now, they owe five people. One wants R5 000, and the other R6 500. The others want R3 000, R2 500 and R1 000,” he added.
As if that’s not enough, he said one of the mechanics allegedly stole R2 000 from a cross-border transporter.
“We live in fear because of what they’ve done. We need help to get these guys rehabilitated, then we can work on getting the cars fixed. Any donations will also be helpful,” said Gumede.
Moyo said he started stripping clients’ cars after he was influenced by some of his friends. He realised it was making him good money and he couldn’t stop.
“I sometimes do this because some owners take advantage of me being young and refuse to pay,” he said.
He added that he started taking crystal meth in 2020 during the lockdown and usually spends R500 to R1 000 per day on it.
Crystal meth. Image taken from Medical News
“Those whose cars are still intact should fetch them. We ask the rest of our clients to give us some time to deal with the drug issue, then we’ll sort those cars out,” he said.
Ndebele said he used to be a street vendor and like a lot of people, he was badly affected when Covid-19 hit the country. His friend plugged him into fixing cars and they started making money.
“We use that money to buy food and then alcohol and drugs with the rest. But we want to turn our lives around because we can see how badly this has turned out and how we’ve put our families in danger,” Ndebele revealed.
None of the mechanics’ clients have pressed charges with the police. One of their clients, Mandla Mnguni said almost every part of his car was stripped a year ago.
“I told them to pay me R8 000 and there’s still R2 500 remaining. I hope they get help and find a way to pay people their monies because they won’t always find someone as patient as me,” Mnguni added. @RealSimbaJemwa
