Tafadzwa Chidawa, a former police officer turned private investigator, has been arrested following the confirmation of a warrant related to a five-year-old theft case.
The incident in question involves a staged robbery that took place at Blue Ridge Lodge in 2020.
Chidawa is accused of conspiring with several accomplices to orchestrate a fraudulent fake arrest scheme, resulting in the theft of US$20,000.
Several individuals associated with this case have since been apprehended, while others remain at large.
The origins of the crime trace back to a romantic relationship between Melody Matanhire and Malvern Mutanda
Mutanda deceived Matanhire into believing he needed her help to “clean” US$100,000 in soiled money. He persuaded her to withdraw US$20,000 in legitimate cash, promising a financial reward for her assistance
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Under the impression that the deal was authentic, Matanhire withdrew the money from her Glen Lorne home and accompanied Mutanda to Blue Ridge Lodge, unaware that she was to be the target of an elaborate scheme. Upon their arrival, Matanhire handed over the money, which was placed in a cooler box.
At that moment, Chidawa and his alleged accomplices—Paradza Passmore Matubu, Perseverance Chisango, and Francis Takura—stormed into the lodge, posing as police officers. They arrested Mutanda, seized the cooler containing the cash, and, after pretending to detain Matanhire, left the scene with the stolen money.
Believing they had successfully executed their plan without detection, the group met privately later to divide the ill-gotten funds among themselves.
However, the scheme began to unravel when Matanhire, in an attempt to conceal her financial loss from her husband, staged a fake robbery at her home. Detectives from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Homicide Division quickly uncovered the truth. Their investigation led to the arrest of Mutanda, along with the recovery of some of the stolen money.
Further inquiries resulted in the arrest of Takura, who was found driving a Mercedes-Benz Compressor allegedly used during the crime. During this arrest, police discovered an identification card belonging to Chidawa inside Takura’s vehicle, further implicating him in the staged robbery.
