Alert Malawian Police have recovered a Toyota Land Cruiser suspected to have been stolen in Zimbabwe, leading to the arrest of two suspected cross-border motor vehicle rustlers, who were on the verge of selling the vehicle.
The two suspects – a Zimbabwean national Tendai Mtunguwazi, 40, and 28-year-old Kabelo Khotlele, a South African national were nabbed in the Malawian capital Lilongwe after the police were tipped.
The Malawian police intercepted the high-end vehicle in low density location of Area 47, an affluent suburb in the capital city, Lilongwe, after the buyer, who had recently taken possession of the car, became suspicious of its origins.
Acting on instinct, the law-abiding would-be buyer tipped the police about the suspected stolen vehicle and the cops acted swiftly on the matter.
Following the report, Malawian law enforcement officers conducted a targeted operation and successfully arrested Mtunguwazi and Khotlele, who were allegedly involved in the cross-border vehicle smuggling ring.
Malawi Police national spokesperson Peter Kalaya could not be drawn for his comment as his phone went ringing, unanswered.
However, inside sources privy to the matter, preliminary investigations suggest that the vehicle may have been smuggled into Malawi after being stolen either in Zimbabwe or South Africa. Authorities are now working with regional law enforcement agencies, including Interpol, to trace the vehicle’s original registration and ownership.
“The arrest of the two suspects is a breakthrough in what we believe could be part of a broader transnational vehicle theft and smuggling syndicate,” an inside source, a senior Malawian police official said.
Added the police source: “We are liaising with our counterparts in Zimbabwe and South Africa to establish the full facts.”
Photos released by authorities show the two suspects in custody, as investigations continue to verify the circumstances surrounding the theft and movement of the vehicle across borders.
The Toyota Land Cruiser, a popular target for criminal syndicates due to its high market value and demand across southern Africa, has been seized and is currently being held as evidence.
Back in Zimbabwe, law enforcement agencies have acknowledged the development and are expected to dispatch investigators to assist in verifying whether the vehicle was stolen locally. If confirmed, this would not be the first time Zimbabwean-registered vehicles have been found across borders as part of illicit trade networks.
The arrests have raised fresh concerns over the security of high-end vehicles in the region and the loopholes being exploited by syndicates operating across Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Malawi.
Authorities are urging car buyers to conduct thorough background checks before purchasing vehicles, especially across borders, and to report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.
More updates are expected as the investigation unfolds, and regional police deepen their collaboration to crack down on cross-border crime.
“We are liaising with our counterparts in Zimbabwe and South Africa.”
Malawi Police
inside source
