Thief Jailed 10 Years For Stealing Signal Cable Worth Less Than US$100

A Zvishavane magistrate has sentenced a 23-year-old man to 10 years in prison for possessing National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) signal cable worth less than US$100.

Clever Mudakuenda was arrested in May after police found 36 metres of two-core signal copper cable at his homestead in Mukwakwe Village under Chief Wedza. The NRZ said the cable was valued at US$97.50.

The NRZ confirmed the sentence last week, warning the public that tampering with railway equipment “might result in heavy prison sentences despite the value of the property involved.”

Mudakuenda’s case is not isolated. The NRZ has, in recent months, publicised several similar convictions — including a Gweru man jailed for 10 years for stealing underground signal copper cables worth US$529, and four men sentenced to 10 years each for vandalising infrastructure in Mutare and Gweru.

A Zvishavane magistrate has sentenced a 23-year-old man to 10 years in prison for possessing National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) signal cable worth less than US$100, in the latest case highlighting Zimbabwe’s tough stance on infrastructure vandalism.

Clever Mudakuenda was arrested in May after police found 36 metres of two-core signal copper cable at his homestead in Mukwakwe Village under Chief Wedza. The NRZ said the cable was valued at US$97.50.

The parastatal confirmed the sentence in a statement this week, warning the public that tampering with railway equipment “might result in heavy prison sentences despite the value of the property involved.”

The Copper Control Amendment Act, passed in 2022, created a mandatory minimum for copper theft.

The law provides that any person who vandalises essential infrastructure through theft of copper cables, or who is found in possession of stolen copper cables, “shall be guilty of an offence, and if there are no special circumstances peculiar to the case, be liable to imprisonment for a period not less than 10 years without the option of a fine”.

The same law states explicitly: “any person found in possession of stolen copper cables will be liable to imprisonment for a period not less than 10 years without the option of a fine”.

The law was designed to protect ZESA, NRZ and TelOne, after ZESA reported losing over US$2 million annually to cable theft and TelOne lost US$1.5 million in 2021 alone