Chinese man in possession of 21g gold arrested at RGM Airport
A Chinese national in possession of 21 grams of gold was arrested at the Robert Mugabe International airport on the 26th of May 2021 as he was exiting Zimbabwe on his way to Mali.
Court heard that Jianming checked into the airport on his way to Mali on the 26th of May 2021. He went through all the necessary protocols and his passport was even stamped out at the exit desk.
When he arrived at the last check point his luggage was scanned and one button weighing 21,21grams and gold amalgam weighing 3,41g were detected.
Jianming was asked to provide proof that he was authorised to be in possession of the precious metal and he failed to.
The state pushed for a mandatory jail term and argued that it was becoming problematic and the country was being deprived of much-needed revenue.
His defence attorney, Muchadehama, argued that there are special circumstances that do not warrant the imposition of a mandatory jail term. The lawyer said Jianming did not know it was an offence for one to be in possession of gold in Zimbabwe as it is not a crime in China. Jianming claimed he was given the two pieces as a gift by a friend and he has had them in his wallet since November 2019.
Muchadehama said another mitigating factor was his client did not try to hide the pieces as he was going through the airport to which the state argued that Jianming had total disregard of the law as he had knowledge of the stones but didn’t bother to verify if there are precious or not.
Jianming was also in violation of immigration laws and was also fined for overstaying in the country.