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Chronicle Reporter
A VICTORIA Falls man, who helped some thieves transport property that was stolen from neighbouring Botswana to the resort city in January after the criminals paid him with gas cylinders from the loot, has been charged for theft.

Justice Justen (35) of 8661 Mkhosana was not asked to plead to a count of theft of two gas cylinders when he appeared before Victoria Falls magistrate Ms Linda Dzvene.

He was remanded out of custody on his own cognisance to April 1 when trial is expected to start.

Justen was allegedly hired by Tinashe Wireless Nyarukokora (25) of 4807, Thabani Gumbo (27) of 4806 and Brighton Nowakhe (27) of 1220 all in Chinotimba to transport them in his vehicle to Kazungula where they used an undesignated point to exit the border and broke into a lodge.

Justen dropped the trio in Kazungula and drove back to Victoria Falls.

While in Botswana, the trio broke into Elephant Camp in Lesoma and stole an assortment of goods comprising fire extinguishers, fridges, gas and electric stoves, camping material and other electrical gadgets and sneaked back into Zimbabwe with the goods through the bush without being detected.

The property was worth close to US$2 000.

They phoned Justen so he could pick them up from Kazungula to Victoria Falls which he did.

He charged them US$80 for transport and they gave him two gas cylinders each weighing 40kg which were part of the loot as payment.

Investigations led to the arrest of the trio and recovery of some of the property while the two gas cylinders given to Justen have not been recovered.

Nyarukokora, Gumbo and Nowakhe are already serving 27 months each after being convicted by the same court of two counts of entering or exiting through an ungazetted point and one of theft each.

Miss Audrey Mukanganya prosecuted.

@NyikaLingani