Two men have been arrested in eastern Zimbabwe after police found 770 dagga plants allegedly growing among maize in a field in Chimanimani, according to 263Chat.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police named the suspects as Lovemore Zambasira, 73, and Liberty Maunganidze, 38. Both were taken into custody on Monday in Ruwaka Village after officers received a tip-off that the pair were cultivating the crop, which is also known locally as mbanje.
263Chat reports that when police searched the field they recovered the 770 plants growing alongside the maize, as well as quantities of processed dagga.
Why it matters
The case puts a spotlight on the way illicit cannabis cultivation in Zimbabwe is often hidden inside ordinary farmland, where it can be difficult to spot without a tip-off. The age of one of the suspects has also drawn attention: at 73, Zambasira is far older than the typical profile of someone facing cultivation charges.
The arrests also signal that police are continuing a nationwide push against unlicensed growing, even as the country maintains a legal framework for licensed cannabis production. The distinction between legal and illegal cultivation is central to how the ZRP is framing the case.
Suspects held ahead of court appearance
The two men remain in police custody and are due to appear in court on charges of unlawfully cultivating dagga, 263Chat reports. The police have not indicated a date for the hearing.
Under Zimbabwean law, growing dagga without a licence is a criminal offence. The ZRP repeated that warning after the Chimanimani arrests, and said its operations to locate and dismantle hidden plantations would keep running across the country.
The plants found in Ruwaka Village were mixed in with maize, a method that allows cannabis to blend into a legitimate crop. Police said the search followed intelligence rather than a routine patrol, suggesting the field had not been obvious from the outside.
A crop with a legal and an illegal side
Zimbabwe has allowed licensed cultivation of cannabis for medicinal and research purposes, but that permission does not extend to unlicensed growers, and the police statement drew a clear line between the two.
263Chat's report did not say how the suspects intend to plead, whether they have legal representation, or what quantity of processed dagga was seized. It also did not specify the size of the field or how long the plants had been growing.
What happens next: the two men are expected to appear in court on cultivation charges, and the ZRP says further anti-plantation operations are planned nationwide.
