Mangochi Police have arrested a 24-year-old man, Wilson Frezer, for allegedly being behind a series of thefts targeting lodges across the district.
According to police, lodge owners had been reporting cases of unknown criminals stealing plasma television sets and beddings from their establishments over the past six months.
Mangochi Police Station Public Relations Officer, Inspector Amina Tepani Daudi, said investigations revealed that the suspect allegedly posed as a genuine customer by booking a room and paying for accommodation while carrying a large carton, which he claimed contained a parcel to be sent elsewhere.
“After spending a short time at the lodge, the suspect would leave with the carton, pretending to send it through a Kabaza bicycle rider.
It was only later that lodge owners would discover that plasma television sets and bedsheets had been stolen from the rooms,” explained Daudi.
She said the suspect’s scheme came to light during a recent incident at Mogas Lodge, where he attempted to send the purported parcel using a Kabaza bicycle.
A search of the carton allegedly uncovered a stolen plasma television set and bedsheets taken from the lodge, leading to his immediate arrest.
Further investigations linked Frezer to similar thefts at Garden Lodge, Blue Fish Lodge, Jazaka Lodge, Nkhwazi Lodge, and Jafali Lodge, where several plasma television sets were reportedly stolen using the same method.
Police detectives have since recovered five plasma television sets in Mangochi and Dedza districts, where the suspect is believed to have sold the stolen property.
The recovered items have been positively identified by their rightful owners.
Frezer is expected to appear before court soon to answer charges of burglary and theft once police complete the necessary procedures.
He hails from Nongwa Village, Traditional Authority Bwananyambi, in Mangochi District.
