Zimbabwe Cricket chairperson Peter Chingoka and managing director Osias Bvute were arrested and placed in custody, police said on Tuesday.
”They have been charged with contravening sections of the Exchange Control Act, and they will appear in court soon,” Chief Superintendent Oliver Mandipaka told The Associated Press.
News of the arrests followed a meeting earlier of about 40 people on Tuesday at Harare Sports Club aimed at solving the crisis which has engulfed cricket in Zimbabwe.
Chingoka and Bvute went with their lawyer to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe in central Harare late Monday and, after questioning, were taken into custody.
It was their third visit to the Reserve Bank in the last two weeks.
Chingoka and Bvute are being represented by Wilton Manashe, who was not available for comment.
Their arrests followed those of test cricketers Vusimusi Sibanda and Waddington Mwayenga and the national team manager Babu Meman on Saturday. They were released after 48 hours following questioning about their foreign currency earnings from match fees.
Asked who would be running Zimbabwe Cricket in the absence of Chingoka and Bvute, ZC media manager Lovemore Banda said: ”I have no idea. What do you mean?”
The detention of Chingoka and Bvute comes three weeks after a demand for their sacking, following allegations by the seven provincial chairperson and player representatives, led by captain Tatenda Taibu alleging financial irregularities.
In a letter to the International Cricket Council last week, the seven provincial chairperson asked for a freeze on all foreign income pending investigation of transactions through a Barclays Knightsbridge account in London, income and expenditure accounts for TV companies and ”other allegations of several instances of impropriety in ZC”.
They also asked the ICC to examine other transactions, including house purchases, up-market vehicle purchases and credit card transactions.
ZC vice chairperson Justice Ahmed Ebrahim, who will now stand in as chairperson, was not available for comment.
He is due to chair a meeting Wednesday of all the national players, several directors, provincial chairmen and other stakeholders to see how they can oust Chingoka and Bvute from their positions, which they still technically hold. – Sapa-AP