09 Aug 2020

 Police have noted with concern a trend where people smuggle goods between Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Speaking in an interview on August 6 Tshesebe police station commander, Superintendent Amos Kekgathetse, said perpetrators smuggled electronic appliances through ungazzetted points.

He stated that on August 4, a truck was intercepted at Butale carrying 65 electronic appliances such as television sets, sound systems, home theatres and decoders.

Unfortunately, he noted that the two suspects believed to be Zimbabwean nationals managed to escape, leaving the truck behind.

Supt Kekgathetse said the truck could have been traveling from Zimbabwe to Francistown to exchange goods, which were labelled as defects.

The station commander said preliminary investigations indicated that the goods had been purchased from a supplier in Francistownand upon realising their defects, the clients in Zimbabwe returned them.

Mr Kekgathetse highlighted that the police were keeping a close eye on the suspicious movement of goods between the two countries, adding that during the past few months they had registered a significant number of goods such as clothing items and electronics that were believed to be transported to Zimbabwe.

The station commander stated that both the police and BDF continued to patrol Tshesebe policing area day and night especially at the border fence.

Supt Kekgathetse warned Batswana to desist from conniving with foreigners to break the law and smuggle goods in or out of the country.

He said such unlawful acts were risky in that they jeopardised the country’s efforts to fight COVID-19.

“Locals can easily contract the virus during these illegal encounters,” he said.

Meanwhile, Supt Kekgathetse expressed satisfaction over the level of cooperation from truck drivers at the Ramokgwebana holding bay.

Truckers, he indicated, were following all COVID-19 protocols. ENDS