By Chantelle Muzanenhamo
Police have intercepted a suspected gold smuggling operation and recovered 15.7 kilogrammes of gold worth more than US$1.56 million, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) confirmed.
According to a statement posted on the ZRP’s official X account, detectives from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Minerals, Flora and Fauna Unit acted on a tip-off received on August 19, 2025, that gold was about to be smuggled out of the country in a Toyota Prado Land Cruiser.
The vehicle was tracked, leading to the arrest of three suspects and the recovery of the gold, which has since been secured at the Fidelity Gold Refinery in Msasa, Harare.
“The ZRP confirms that a tip was received on 19/08/25 that gold was about to be smuggled out of the country whilst hidden in a Toyota Prado Land Cruiser vehicle,” police said in the statement. “Detectives tracked the vehicle leading to the arrest of three suspects and the subsequent recovery of 15.7 kilogrammes of gold valued at USD 1,568,860.00.”
Police said investigations into the case are ongoing.
Zimbabwe has in recent years stepped up operations to curb gold smuggling, which authorities say costs the country hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue annually.