Story by Aifheli Mudau
THE Zimbabwe Republic Police has intensified engagement with the Beitbridge community in efforts to curb crime, following reports of a significant rise in armed robberies and related offences in the border town.
Beitbridge, the country’s busiest border post, has recorded a notable surge in criminal activity, with statistics showing a sharp increase in armed robbery cases.
This has led the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to engage concerned residents who are now living in fear.
“Sometimes, as community members, we affect arrests, but we are not getting enough support from the police. We give those tips to arrest, but all these do not assist us,” a community member said.
“Let us have police visibility in our areas, may it deter these people who are terrorising the community,” a resident said.
“We are now afraid to report because once you do that, these suspects come back to threaten you,which we believe the police are part of all these things. If you are doubting us, we can even supply names,” a concerned resident said.
Members of the community were also urged to use banking facilities to reduce cases of armed robbery targeting cash stashed in homes.
“Most of the people they become targets of these armed robberies because they stash a lot of cash in their homes and at the same time they post their fortunes on their WhatsApp status,which then attract armed robbers, so we thought of engaging communities so that they be aware of such dangers as we collectively fight crime together,” Acting Officer Commanding Beitbridge District, Superintendent Bedknock Mukutiri said.
The government has since called for a multi-pronged approach to fight crime relying heavily on community cooperation.
