Teenager Arrested For Stealing ZESA Copper Cables In Harare

Police have arrested a teenager over the theft of Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) armoured copper cables in Warren Park 1, Harare.

ZRP spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said Tashinga Majoni, 19, was nabbed on 26 July 2026 along 37 Street after a member of the public caught him cutting the cables and tipped off the police.

“The ZRP confirms the arrest of Tashinga Majoni (19) in connection with the theft of ZESA armoured copper cables along 37 Street, Warren Park 1, Harare, on 26 July 2026,” he said.

“The suspect was apprehended after an alert member of the public observed him cutting the cables and promptly notified the Police.

“Officers from ZRP Warren Park responded swiftly, leading to the suspect’s arrest at the scene.

“Police recovered ZESA armoured cables, a cable cutter, a hoe, a black satchel, a torch and a knife from Tashinga Majoni.”

Stealing ZESA cables carries a mandatory 10-year jail term. It is charged under Section 60A(3)(a) of the Electricity Act [Chapter 13:19] which says:

“Any person who, without lawful excuse,… tampers with an apparatus for generating, transmitting, distributing, or supplying electricity… shall be guilty of an offence, and, if there are no special circumstances peculiar to the case… be liable to imprisonment for a period of not less than ten years.”

If the court does find “special circumstances peculiar to the case”, it can impose a lesser sentence – a fine up to level 14 or up to 10 years imprisonment, or both.

In 2022, it was revealed that Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), an arm of ZESA Holdings, was losing about US$5 million annually to vandalism and theft of copper cables.

At the time, the Ministry of Energy and Power Development proposed a 30-year jail term for those convicted of vandalising ZESA infrastructure.