Two Zim men arrested for illegal possession of rough diamonds

Two Zimbabwean men, one a police officer and the other an employee of the Mines and Minerals Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ), were recently arrested after they were found in possession of 11 pieces of rough diamonds.
The diamonds were evaluated on June 11 and the assayer confirmed 11 of the 12 pieces were genuine diamonds.
New Zimbabwe.com reports that the stones weighed 35.24 carats and were worth $2 925,85.
The two appeared before a magistrate and were remanded out of custody to December 18 for trial.
Prosecutors told the court that Detective Constable Chidhakwa stationed at CID Mutare Flora and Fauna unit received information on May 29 that a black Mazda BT50 double cab had been used to smuggle diamonds from Chiadzwa diamond mining field on the day in question.
Following a search, the vehicle occupants failed to produce a licence for ownership of the diamonds leading to their subsequent arrest.
The diamonds were taken to MMCZ for safekeeping as an exhibit.
Two Mutare Central District senior police officers were arrested last September for allegedly working as 'couriers' to transport stolen diamonds from the Marange diamond fields, in Zimbabwe.
Illegal diamond syndicates had allegedly enlisted the services of 'rogue' cops to transport the stones through roadblocks to avoid tight security checkpoints in the diamond mining area.
At least 2359 illegal diamond miners were arrested in 2019 in Manicaland Province where Marange diamond fields are located.
Diamonds are expected to add at least $1 billion to the $12 billion that Zimbabwe is expecting the mining industry to contribute to the country's gross domestic product by 2023.  
Zimbabwe is also planning to more than triple its diamond output to 11 million carats by 2023 from 3.2 million carats in 2018.   

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished