COP TURNS DOWN BRIBE, THWARTS THEFT
Around 19:00hrs, Inspector Hatontola started off from Lu saka to Mumbwa District and met the contact person who pulled two small black bags from the right side of the road in the bush and put them in the Toyota Regius vehicle .
“He also pulled a 25 kg white sack which contained a big submissive pump, a black roll of cable which I suspected was a power cable for the submis sive pump and a roll of nylon rope,” the Cop narrated.
Inspector Hatontola was then asked to drive about 1.5 Km in the western direction and was ordered to make a right turn in the bush to pack the solar panels from where they were hidden.
It was at this point that Mr Hatontola sensed something fishy and refused to drive the vehicle in the bush around that time on account that it was not only risky but late.
It was also at this point in desperation that the suspect offered to give him K12,000 after being queried on where he got the items from.
The contact explained that he got them from some farm on the south side of the road and that there was nothing to worry about because some farm workers knew what was going on.
Upon realising that he could be dealing with an active theft case, Inspector Hatontola then drove for a few kilome tres, parked the car by the road side and immediately called a Chisamba based Police Offi cer, Constable Jimmy Sikazwe and told him to quickly alert Kapyanga Police check point or Nangoma police post to intercept the motor vehicle which he was driving because he highly suspected that the solar panels he was about to carry to Lusaka were stolen goods.
Shortly after speaking to constable Sikazwe, Inspector Hatontola then called sergeant Silwenga of Nangoma Police Post, made a similar request and gave him the number plate of the car he was driving.
After the alert and the sto len goods packed in his ve hicle, Hatontola then started off for Lusaka and reached Nangoma area at exactly 22:49 hours only to be stopped by a car which blocked his lane.
Three male police officers, one of them armed with an AK47 assault came out of the car and ordered Inspector Ha tontola to park the vehicle at the police post.
The officers then led all three occupants into the in quiries office and then re turned to search the vehicle to check what was inside only to find the stolen goods.
It was at this point that the officers then ordered Inspec tor Hatontola to go to the next office for questioning while the other two men were put in police cells.
After the interrogations, the officers offloaded all items from the vehicle and put them in the Inquiries Office, thanked the Inspector for giving them a tip-off of the crime which was in progress and set him free to drive back to Lusaka.