Back to square 1 for Ecobank Bulawayo US$4 million heist: Police breathe fire over ‘leaked’ suspects list

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has vehemently denied releasing a list of six men purportedly implicated in the audacious US$4,4 million Ecobank heist in Bulawayo two weeks ago. The alleged list, which circulated widely on social media on Thursday, named individuals including some deceased, sparking outrage and confusion.

The list, which claimed to be an official police release, included Elijah Vumbunu (alias Mupositori), Takafa Vumbunu (alias Naison Mahembe), David Sawadye, Israel Zulu, Kudakwashe Mudzingwa (alias Umbro), Paul Chinake, and Brian Murape. However, Police National Spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi categorically dismissed the document.

“As police, we have not made an official announcement of the suspects. We want to emphasise that we have not stated the suspects. Whoever is dishing out names, or giving out names is communicating information that is not officially from the Zimbabwe Republic Police. This is the correct position. We also want to find out the agenda of the people who are circulating these names. We will issue the names at the appropriate time once we have had a proper position,” Comm Nyathi stated.

Adding to the controversy, reliable sources revealed that two individuals named on the list, David Sawadye and Israel Zulu, are deceased. Sawadye, according to police sources, died in a shootout with detectives in Harare last year. Zulu, meanwhile, was reportedly fatally shot by a How Mine Chief Security Officer during a confrontation in October 2022, following a cash-in-transit robbery involving nearly 12kg of gold.

The inclusion of these deceased individuals in the leaked list has understandably caused distress to their families.

“If it is true that the police released such a statement, one is left questioning if there is ever such an investigation taking place. If the police made a mistake, the logical thing to do is to issue an apology to the family. We have accepted that we lost our brother under unclear circumstances, but linking him to a crime from his grave cannot be tolerated,” a relative of Sawadye, who requested anonymity, told The Standard.

The leaked list also highlighted the notorious criminal history of Elijah Vumbunu, identified as a prime suspect in the Ecobank robbery. Vumbunu’s criminal record is extensive, including a previous conviction for a ZW$40 million heist in Mutare in 2003, a subsequent prison break from Chikurubi Maximum Prison in 2005, and alleged involvement in the 2022 How Mine gold robbery.

He was only recently released from prison on bail pending an appeal against a 40-year sentence. His brother, Takafa Vumbunu, is also a wanted man, with a 62-year sentence for armed robbery. Both brothers, along with their older brother Abraham (also recently released from prison for armed robbery), are known to have engaged in criminal activities since the mid-1990s. Their criminal enterprise began with petty theft and carjacking, escalating to armed robberies. Their older brother, Nehemiah Temai Vumbunu, was fatally shot during a crime spree several years ago.

The ZRP’s denial of the leaked list leaves the investigation into the Ecobank heist shrouded in uncertainty. Commissioner Nyathi’s statement emphasises the police’s commitment to a thorough investigation and the promise to release official information at the appropriate time.