A 30-year-old Chinese finance director has appeared at the Harare Magistrates’ Court facing charges of attempted smuggling and contravening the Customs and Excise Act after allegedly orchestrating the illegal export of 720 tonnes of unbeneficiated lithium ore from a Ruwa site between December 2025 and July 2026.
Minmin Song, a finance director at Orequest (Pvt) Ltd, is accused of working with company co-director Ning Yaokun, also known as Tony, who is still at large, and another Chinese national identified as Andy.
The court heard that in December 2025, the group allegedly established an illicit mineral processing and dispatch operation at Plot 5, Cheltenham Park Drive, Ruwa, with the intention of exporting lithium ore to China through Forbes Border Post.
Song and Ning allegedly leased the property and installed equipment including jaw crushers, a front-end loader and TLB machines before employing local workers.
Prosecutors allege that from April 2026, the group began stockpiling lithium ore at the site and processing it from May.
Song allegedly worked with Ning, Shuvai Muza and Charlene Tanyaradzwa Chivandire, who are already on remand, to handle finances, arrange haulage and facilitate fraudulent export documentation.
The State alleges that 40 shipping containers were booked through Maersk Harare on July 16, 2026.
Two logistics companies were allegedly engaged to provide trucks, while Mutare-based clearing agent Brian Sakarombe was contracted to handle customs formalities.
The court heard that fraudulent export documents bearing the name of Bikita Minerals were allegedly used to facilitate the shipments.
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One truck, carrying lithium ore, reportedly crossed Forbes Border Post and reached the Port of Beira in Mozambique.
Two other trucks were intercepted at Forbes on July 23 while allegedly using the fraudulent documents. Sakarombe was subsequently arrested on allegations of attempting to bribe Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) officials.
The court heard that other trucks had already loaded empty containers in Harare and taken them to Ruwa for loading.
Following the border arrests, the drivers were allegedly instructed to remain in Ruwa while alternative documentation was sought.
The operation was later abandoned, with 60 tonnes of lithium ore offloaded at Lochinvar, Harare, while another load was returned to the Ruwa premises.
A subsequent inspection at the Ruwa site recovered 300 tonnes of lithium ore, while 60 tonnes were intercepted at Forbes and another 60 tonnes recovered at Lochinvar.
The total recovered was therefore 420 tonnes.
Prosecutors allege that 23 trucks carrying 30-tonne loads, together with an additional 30 tonnes transported on the truck that reached Beira, had already been successfully smuggled out of Zimbabwe, bringing the alleged total to 720 tonnes.
The State is yet to quantify the full financial prejudice.
Song was remanded in custody to a later date.
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