By Matabeleland North Correspondent
JAMBEZI: Suspected Zambian cattle rustlers here have once again come under spotlight after a local woman lost a herd of 15 cattle suspected to have been driven across the Zambezi River into the neighbouring country’s southern region.
Over the years, villagers along the Zambezi River in Hwange district have claimed to have lost dozens of cattle to suspected thieves from across the river in Zambia.
Each time some herd is lost, spoors lead to the river where they disappear.
Numerous reports have been made to the police, but with no efforts to recover or track the animals across the river through the Interpol.
Beauty Ncube (44) of Sidinda Village 2 under Chief Shana lost 15 cattle last week.
Her children released a herd of 25 for grazing and when they rounded them up late afternoon, 15 were missing.
They tracked the spoors to the Zambezi River where they disappeared.
Matabeleland North police spokesperson Inspector Glory Banda confirmed receiving a report and said the spoors were traced to the Zambezi riverbank
“The herd was released for grazing on Sidinda grazing area and when they went to round them up around 3 pm, her (Ncube’s) son Mickael Ndlovu (20) discovered that 15 cattle were missing from the herd. He searched for the cattle until he returned home around 8.30 pm with only 10 and notified his mother,” the police spokesperson said.
“On the following day at around 6 am the complainant’s son proceeded to Lumbora in Sidinda and continued searching and the spoors that led him to the grazing lands along the Zambezi River near the Kemabondo crossing area.”
Over the years, there has been an outcry from communities living along the Zambezi River in Hwange district over the loss of livestock to thieves suspected to be Zambians.
The cattle rustlers drive the livestock across the mighty Zambezi River where locals cannot follow them.
The thieves often seize the domestic animals when they are in the care of herd boys who would flee during the incidents.
Early this year, a Jambezi farmer Nambikwa Ncube (46) and wife Irene Zulu (41) said they abandoned cattle rearing after they lost their entire herd to Zambian thieves who drove the domestic animals across the Zambezi River.
