Zimbabwean police at Beit Bridge on Friday arrested six suspects, three of them Malawians for attempting to smuggle eight tonnes of copper cables worth US$200 000 into South Africa.

The cables was hidden in a Malawian registered truck, which was heading to Johannesburg.

The local police spokesperson, Chief Superintendent Hosiah Mukombero said the suspects were arrested at the border at around 03:00 following a tip-off.

“We arrested six suspects at Beit Bridge border post for attempting to smuggle stolen copper out of the country using a forged document. In fact, three Malawians arrived at the border in a Mercedes Benz haulage truck and as a customs procedure, they presented a fake Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) document indicating that the truck was carrying scrap metal destined for South Africa,” he said.

However, a ZIMRA officer became suspicious prompting him to alert some police detectives operating at the border. The truck was then taken to a scanner shed for examination leading to the discovery of the copper, concealed in a trailer.

The three Malawians failed to account for the copper cables, leading to their arrest. The Malawians then implicated the other three Zimbabwean suspects, amongst others a 35-year-old Beit Bridge based clearing agent, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the forging of the ZIMRA document.

“The truck, which was coming from Malawi, went through Harare where the suspects loaded the copper before proceeding to Beitbridge enroute to Gauteng,” Mukombero said.

He said the suspects are expected to appear in court soon.