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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]

ABOUT eight residents in Bulawayo’s Njube Suburb’s E Square section woke up on Wednesday morning to discover that their water meters and taps had been stolen.

Thieves broke into their yards during the night, carrying out a well-coordinated operation.

Residents strongly suspect that the culprits are individuals from within their community who are familiar with the neighbourhood watch committee’s patrol schedules.

“We have a very active neighbourhood watch committee in our section that patrols at specific times. Judging by the number of meters stolen in one night, these thieves clearly knew the patrol timings and struck after the team had retired. This knowledge can only come from people we live with,” said one resident.

A member of the crime liaison committee working with Njube Police Station stated that the thefts likely occurred between 3am and 4am on Wednesday.

“The neighbourhood watch committee ended their patrols just before 2:30am that night. It seems the thieves monitored the situation and struck soon after. After 4am would have been risky, as some residents start waking up to prepare for the market. We strongly suspect that this was carried out by people from within the community,” he said.

This is a developing story.