Zimbabwean and South African Men Arrested for Possession of R15 Million Worth of Gold

• The South African Police Service arrested two men who were caught engaging in illicit gold trade
• The men, a Zimbabwean national and a South African, were found with gold worth R15 million
• South Africans jokingly defended the South African who was arrested and said he was forced into the crime

Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, covered criminal activities, police investigations, police shootouts and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.

BRAKPAN, GAUTENG — Two men have been arrested in Brakpan, Gauteng, for trading in gold illegally.

Hawks arrest gold dealers

The Hawks arrested 33-year-old Zimbabwean national Joachim Chivayo and Ayanda Brian Gungwa, a 20-year-old from South Africa. The Hawks' Serious Organised Crime Investigation team conducted the arrests on 26 November 2024. The two were arrested at the Helferwyk Estate, and they seized R15 million worth of gold. The police also seized a Mercedes Benz.

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The duo face charges of illegally possessing gold and contravening the Precious Metals Act. They appeared in court on 27 November and were remanded. They are still in custody.

SA reacts to the arrests

Some netizens responding to the arrests on Facebook jokingly defended the South African.

Ralesu Rantjie said:

"The South African was forced into this."

Albina Bambo said:

"No. They're actually the buyers or source overseas buyers."

Chris Looney said:

"This has been happening for many years, not just the last month."

Kizie Diya Jokonya said:

"Maybe they're Zama Zama buyers."

Hsai Martins observed

"Now in every major crime that the cops bust, a foreign national or nationals are always involved in a big way."

Pauli Potgieter said:

"But yet the Zama Zamas operate deep in the earth. Or are the Hwks only working above ground?"

Paul Rocha joked:

"It was meant to go to Dubai with Pastor Angel."

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Teenager among zama zamas arrested

In a related article, Briefly News reported that a teenager was arrested among the zama zamas that emerged from the Stilfontein Mine.

At night, the miners emerged from Shaft 11, which is linked to Shaft 10. They thought the cops were not stationed at the shaft but tried to escape back underground when they saw them. They failed, and the cops arrested them.

Source: Briefly News