Zimbabwe police give update on Ecobank US$4.4 million cash robbery: We are about to arrest those robbers even if they are abroad

Harare – Two months after the audacious daylight robbery of US$4.4 million from an Ecobank branch in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) have issued a confident update, assuring the public that they are closing in on the perpetrators.

The robbery, which unfolded with chilling efficiency in a mere 149 seconds on Thursday, 3 October, at the corner of Fife Street and 9th Avenue, remains the largest cash heist in Zimbabwean history and one of the biggest globally in the last decade.

The incident, which made international headlines, saw seven armed robbers overwhelm a Safeguard security team guarding a cash-in-transit vehicle.

Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele, Bulawayo’s acting police spokesperson, detailed the attack shortly after the event: “Three of the Cash-in-Transit details were armed with a shotgun, which had two rounds of ammunition, a pistol (make and type unknown) with 10 rounds, and a Canik 9mm pistol with five rounds. The accused persons approached the Cash in Transit team, assaulted the details with the butt of AK-47 rifles they were carrying, and disarmed the security team.

“The suspects ordered the security team to lie down on their stomachs and warned them against raising any alarm. The security team complied, and the accused persons took away their guns. The accused persons dragged three trunks that had cash, loaded them into a getaway vehicle, and drove off at high speed. The suspects also took away the three guns which they had taken from the security team.”

Eyewitness accounts paint a vivid picture of the brazen robbery. A female street vendor, who requested anonymity, recounted a chilling detail: “He bought chewing gum, but didn’t say anything to me. He kept looking all over the place then suddenly ran in the direction of the bank. When I looked to see why he was running, I saw him wrestling one of the security guards. Everything happened so fast. When I saw guns, I grabbed my stuff and ran in the opposite direction. In a very short space of time, the white pick-up vehicle sped away, turned left at the traffic lights, and disappeared.”

The getaway vehicle, a white single-cab Ford Ranger, sped away along Fife Street towards 10th Avenue. Besides the cash, the robbers also stole two pistols and a shotgun belonging to the security company, raising serious concerns about the potential for these weapons to be used in future crimes.

The Ecobank Parkade branch, closed for investigations following the robbery, reopened on December 2nd. Authorities believe the robbery was an inside job. The ZRP’s investigation has taken an international dimension, with Interpol and South African authorities engaged in the hunt for the suspects, who are believed to be residing in South Africa.

In an interview with ZTN, police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi stated: “We are hot on the heels in terms of investigating the highly publicised Ecobank Bulawayo branch robbery where over US$4 million was stolen and we have had other robbery cases in Bulawayo and other parts of Zimbabwe.

“We will continue to give updates but we are making headway, whether the people are in Zimbabwe or have crossed the country’s borders we are certain it’s only a matter of time before the culprits are arrested”.

This statement follows an earlier incident where a list of six men purportedly implicated in the heist circulated widely on social media in October. The list, which the ZRP vehemently denied releasing, named individuals, some of whom are deceased, causing considerable public confusion and outrage.

Commissioner 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,” he stated.

Adding to the controversy, reliable sources confirmed that two individuals named on the leaked list, David Sawadye and Israel Zulu, are deceased. Sawadye died in a shootout with detectives in Harare last year, while Zulu was 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 list also highlighted the extensive criminal history of Elijah Vumbunu, a prime suspect in the Ecobank robbery, including a previous conviction for a ZW$40 million heist in Mutare in 2003, a prison escape from Chikurubi Maximum Prison in 2005, and alleged involvement in the 2022 How Mine gold robbery. He was recently released on bail pending an appeal against a 40-year sentence. His brother, Takafa Vumbunu, also faces a 62-year sentence for armed robbery.

The brothers, along with their older brother Abraham (also recently released from prison for armed robbery), have a history of criminal activity dating back to the mid-1990s. Their older brother, Nehemiah Temai Vumbunu, was fatally shot during a crime spree several years ago.

The ZRP’s determination to apprehend the Ecobank robbers, despite the challenges posed by their potential flight across borders, underscores the seriousness with which this high-profile case is being treated.