A 20-year-old South African citizen was robbed at gunpoint of his vehicle, a Toyota Sprinter, with a remote controlled radio and a cell phone, valued at R80 300, and R350 in cash by three unknown suspects near Beitbridge town on Saturday evening.

Police spokesperson for Matabeleland South, Asst Insp Trust Ndlovu, told Mirror that the incident occurred at around 21:00 along the Beitbridge-Masvingo Road near Beitbridge town, about 20 km from the border. “The complainant was phoned by his two friends, whose car had run out of fuel near Lutumba. However, on arrival at that point he noticed two cars which were parked at the scene, but there were no people around,” he said.

Ndlovu said while the process of trying to locate his friends, one of the suspects emerged from a nearby bush, wielding a pistol.

“”The suspect then force-marched the complainant into the bush where the complainant’s two friends were also tied up with a rope, while two other suspects stood guard. The suspects then removed the complainant’s T-shirt and used it to tie his legs and hands,” Ndlovu said.

He said the suspects then robbed the man of his cellphone, a Nokia 1100 and R300. They then took his car and sped off. According to Ndlovu, the car was later found abandoned on the roadside, along the Masvingo-Beitbridge Road, after it had run out of fuel. The three suspects are currently on the run.

“We have since started investigating and are also appealing to members of the community to assist us with information that could eventually lead to the arrest of the suspects. People can contact their nearest police station with any information,” he said.

After robbing the South-African, the three suspects later descended on three stranded Malawians and robbed them of their belongings, valued at nearly R50 000, near Chicago Village near Beitbridge, along the same highway. Ndlovu said the three Malawians had a breakdown along the Beitbridge-Masvingo road. The suspects eventually arrived at the spot under the guise of intending to render assistance to the three Malawians.

“While one of the suspects was negotiating with the complainants, two other suspects then pulled out pistols and demanded cash, while the other one searched the car,” he said. They then took property, including a projector, a Sony digital camera, video camera, a Nokia 6330i cell phone, an LG cell phone, home theatre, radio and a suitcase containing clothes.

The suspects then loaded the items into their vehicle and drove away at high speed. No arrests have been made and the police are still investigating.