ZRP under fire for shooting Admire Sibanda during smuggling operation
A sad event happened in Mutare. A man named Admire Tawanda Sibanda was shot and killed by the police. This happened during a police operation to stop smuggling. Sibanda was trying to protect his truck that was carrying second-hand clothes, which people in Zimbabwe call “mabhero.”
According to a report by Zimeye, the police had set up a roadblock on Vumba Road. They had heard that a truck with illegal clothes was coming. The police stopped the truck and two cars that were with it. One car was a silver Toyota Runx, and the other was a Toyota Mark X.
Sibanda was driving the Toyota Mark X. When another car tried to stop the truck, Sibanda took out a gun and shot at the police. The police shot back, and Sibanda was hit in the neck. He died on the way to the hospital.
Some people who saw what happened think Sibanda was just trying to save his business. He might not have wanted to fight the police. But the police fired six shots during the fight.
The police also caught three other men who were part of the smuggling group. Their names are Phillimon Matiyashe (32), Tawanda Chafanza (33), and Owen Wenjere (29).
The police found a lot of second-hand clothes and shoes in the truck. There were 104 big bags of shoes and 138 big bags of clothes.
The police have told smugglers not to fight with them. They said if this happens again, they will be very strict.
Many people are worried about how the police acted. They think the police might have used too much force. People are asking for a careful look into what happened to see if Sibanda’s death could have been stopped.
This event has made people in Zimbabwe talk about how the police do their job. Some think the police should find ways to catch smugglers without hurting them. Others say the smugglers should not fight back when the police try to stop them.
The sale of second-hand clothes is a big business in Zimbabwe. Many people buy these clothes because they are cheaper than new ones. But the government doesn’t want these clothes brought into the country without permission.
Events like this one in Mutare show how hard it can be to stop smuggling. The police want to do their job, but they also need to be careful not to hurt people.
Sibanda’s family is very sad about what happened. They want to know why he had to die. The police say they will look into everything that happened that night.