Chiyangwa found hiding two stolen luxury vehicles

By Tichaona Sibanda
14 August 2006

Two luxury stolen cars were last week found hidden at the home of former Zanu (PF) legislator for Chinhoyi, Phillip Chiyangwa.

A report in the Sunday Times of South Africa said police from that country recovered two stolen luxury cars from Chiyangwa and a third car was seized from the house of Zanu PF Senator, Vivian Mwashita.

Chiyangwa was arrested last week on charges of attempting to defeat the course of justice for allegedly hiding the cars on behalf of his unnamed associates, but was later cleared of any crime.

Former Zimbabwe Republic Police Assistant Commissioner Jonathan Chawora said although Chiyangwa was cleared of any crime, receiving or handling stolen property knowingly was on its own a criminal offence.

‘I find it hard to believe he was set free because he admits to the fact that two associates of his who were ‘being chased’ had asked him to park the vehicles at his home. He knew the cars were hot and the role he played there by trying to hide the vehicles is a serious crime,’ said Chawora.

The showy former MP confirmed to the Sunday Times that he had been arrested when two luxury cars, a Mercedes-Benz Kompressor and BMW X5 hijacked in South Africa, were found at his home.

Describing himself as the ‘Tokyo Sexwale or the Donald Trump of Zimbabwe’ Chiyangwa denied he knew they were stolen vehicles.

He told the newspaper: ‘I have a lot of cars at my house. I can actually donate cars. I’m rich. I don’t need to steal cars from South Africa.’

Earlier he had been accused of ‘hiding’ a third car, a Porsche Cayenne, hijacked from a Sandton businessman. He told the Sunday Times that the Porsche was actually found at the home of a senior Zimbabwean government official, Senator Vivian Mwashita.

South African police were able to confirm that several cross-border investigations had resulted in the recovery of at least 14 luxury cars worth around R7 million that were impounded in Zimbabwe and returned to to that country following a two-week undercover operation involving both countries.

Some of the vehicles had been found with senior government officials.

The traumatised South African hijack victims later travelled to a police pound in Zimbabwe to identify their cars before insurance company representatives drove them back to South Africa to be sold on auction.

Among the cars were a R1.4-million Porsche Cayenne, a Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG V8, a Toyota Prado VX Landcruiser, six BMWs and several other Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

So far no one involved in the Zimbabwe cases has been convicted. Each year, more than 30 000 cars stolen or hijacked in South Africa are smuggled across the border and sold in neighbouring countries.

According to the Vehicle Security Association of South Africa, highly organised and sophisticated car-theft syndicates operate the estimated R5-billion illegal industry.

The head of the SAPS Organised Crime Unit, Assistant Commissioner Godfrey Lebeya, said police recovered 450 stolen cars this year and 700 last year in cross-border operations.

The Sunday Times reports that its investigations show that South African and Zimbabwean police are investigating the possibility that other stolen luxury vehicles, including a Toyota Prado and a Mercedes parked in front of the Zimbabwean parliament, were being driven by Zimbabwean government officials.