22 fraud, robbery-accused to be sent back to Zimbabwe

TWENTY-TWO suspected criminals are set to be extradited to Zimbabwe from various countries, including South Africa, Botswana, Portugal and the United Arab Emirates, in what could be the country’s largest extradition initiative in history.

 

The fugitives face charges ranging from fraud to armed robbery. The suspects had fled to these countries  after skipping bail while on remand in Zimbabwe.

 

They were tracked down and arrested through the assistance of the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) after Zimbabwe issued Red Notices against them.

 

A Red Notice is an international alert that allows police worldwide to locate, arrest and detain fugitives wanted for prosecution or sentencing, pending extradition.

 

The arrests follow close cooperation between the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP), Interpol and law enforcement agencies in the host countries.

 

Criminal Investigations Department (CID) spokesperson Detective Inspector Rachel Muteweri confirmed the developments.

 

“So far we have a total of 22 suspected criminals who will be extradited back into the country to face various charges. The due processes of the law are now taking effect for the suspects’ extradition to Zimbabwe,” she said.

 

Among the high-profile cases is the infamous US$4 million Ecobank armed robbery that rocked Bulawayo in October 2024.

 

Brothers Abraham and Elijah Temayi Vumbunu, together with their alleged accomplice, Bhekani Mlilo, were arrested in South Africa and Botswana in connection with the heist and are currently awaiting extradition.

 

The daring robbery, which targeted a cash-in-transit operation, was one of the biggest in recent years and exposed serious security gaps within the banking sector.

 

Another case involves fugitive Shepherd Chibaya, who was recently arrested in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, before being flown back to Harare on Monday.

 

Chibaya allegedly defrauded three people of more than US$105 000 in the aftermath of the 2021 Bevern Capital Ponzi scheme. In that scam, scores of people were lured into depositing money with promises of a 50 percent return within six weeks.

 

When the scheme collapsed, victims were left desperate to recover their savings.

 

Authorities say Chibaya exploited the situation by pretending to be a fellow victim and even positioning himself as leader of a victims’ group.

 

“The Zimbabwe Republic Police confirms the arrest of Shepherd Chibaya for fraud.

 

“This follows the Bevern Capital Investment scam in 2021, where several people deposited money into the investment scheme and were promised 50 percent interest within six weeks,” said Insp Muteweri said.

 

“The suspect heard of the scam and pretended to be one of the victims, formed a group in which he pretended to help the victims recover their money. He was subsequently selected as the chairperson.”

 

He then persuaded others to pay him on the pretext that he was pursuing legal action to recover their money, before disappearing with the cash.

 

“On eight different occasions, he approached three complainants, misrepresented that he would facilitate the process of recovering the money and acting on the misrepresentation, the complainants suffered a total prejudice of US$105 830.

 

“He was then arrested and appeared at Harare Magistrates Court and later defaulted. A warrant of arrest was issued on March 14, 2024, and the requisite paperwork was done in order to place the accused person on Red Notice.”

 

He was placed on Interpol’s Red Notice list in April 2025 and later arrested in the UAE.

 

Equally dramatic is the case of Tawanda Hairwadzi, who was picked up in Portugal last month after evading authorities for almost four years.

 

Hairwadzi and his wife ran Eptha Energy, a transport company contracted by Addax Energy in 2021 to deliver two million litres of fuel to a Government ministry.

 

More than a million litres of the consignment, valued at US$743 600, never reached the intended destination.

 

Investigations revealed that the company had shut down and Hairwadzi had gone into hiding.

 

Interpol issued a Red Notice in 2022, leading to his eventual arrest in Lisbon on July 9 this year.

 

He now awaits extradition to Zimbabwe to face charges of theft of trust property.

 

The Herald