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Leonard Ncube Victoria Falls Reporter
POLICE have launched a manhunt for an elderly mbanje kingpin who ran a drug peddling ring with three elderly women, after he skipped bail.

Johannes Dube, 52, who claims he has been smoking the drug for more than 20 years, disappeared after being found in possession of close to 10kg of mbanje last week.

He claimed he was keeping the dagga for personal use.

Dube was part of a four-member gang that included three women which was bust last week after police received a tip-off that they were keeping and selling dangerous drugs to members of the public.

A pompous Dube who boasted during his initial court appearance that he had $3,000 in cash at home, 17 head of cattle, 32 goats and seven donkeys, was on Friday granted $200 bail but disappeared when he was supposed to appear for sentence yesterday.

Victoria Falls magistrate Sharon Rosemani immediately issued a warrant of arrest against him.

Dube’s co-accused, Chiweni Nyoni, 42, of Mkhosana, Mariya Moyo, 55, of Chinotimba and Janet Kheswa, 55, of Mkhosana have since been sentenced.

Dube, who claimed police set dogs on him to force him to reveal the location of the drugs, was the ring leader and 9,470kg of mbanje were recovered at his Mkhosana house.

Police recovered 1,44kg from Nyoni who is a widow while Moyo and Kheswa had 540 grammes and 250 grammes recovered from their houses.

Nyoni, who is originally from Binga, would bring the mbanje while Kheswa, who was working at Tavern Bar, would sell it to patrons.

Said Dube on his last appearance: “I was keeping the mbanje for my personal use so that I don’t run out of stock until the next harvesting season. I bought it to smoke. I have been doing this since I was 30 years old. I wish this court could be lenient on me because I am just used to smoking.

“I would want to open a case against the police for setting a dog on me. I told them I had no more mbanje and they set the dog on me saying I should show them where I was hiding the drugs.”

Nyoni was fined $150 or 15 weeks in jail while Moyo will pay $160 or spend 16 weeks in jail for possessing the dangerous drug. Kheswa, who the court established was in 2008 sentenced to two years in jail for a similar crime, will perform 70 hours of community service at ZRP Victoria Falls.

Particulars of the matter as presented by Listen Nare for the state are that on November 11 police received a tip off that Nyoni possessed drugs.

Police swooped on her home and recovered the mbanje. Subsequent raids at the other three’s homes, led to the arrest of the drug peddling syndicate.