/ 28 December 2011

Police arrest owner of capsized Zim boat

Zimbabwean police have arrested the owner of boat which capsized on Christmas Day, killing 11 children, state media reported on Wednesday.

The state-owned Herald newspaper said the boat’s owner Latif Ameer (53) along with captain Fadil Ramon Weale (27) and mechanic Enock Zulu (36) had been arrested over the accident in which 11 children drowned.

“The three are helping police with investigations and are likely to be charged with 11 counts of culpable homicide,” assistant police commissioner Canaan Mugumira told the newspaper.

The tragedy occurred at around 7pm Sunday on Lake Chivero, about 20km south-west of Harare.

The paper said 17 people were in the boat when it capsized and six people, including the crew and the captain survived. Earlier reports had said that 19 were on board.

The bodies were retrieved on Monday morning and some of the victims of the tragedy have been buried.

On Saturday, also on Lake Chivero, a National Parks game ranger drowned after his boat was hit by a strong wind, while a friend who was with him survived. — AFP