Seven Gweru police officers have appeared before a local magistrate facing charges of accepting bribes from shop owners who were undermining the Covid-19 national lockdown regulations by operating without authority.

The court heard that on April 25, the junior police officers drove to Shamrock Mine in Lower Gweru where they approached Khumbulani Sibanda who was selling liquor without a licence.

In a bid to spare the unlicensed bottle store operator from arrest, the police officers allegedly took 16 cases of Chibuku Super and four cases of cane spirits.

Using the same approach, they went and raided Kitchenburg Farm on April 28 in the Matobo area of Gweru, where they allegedly approached Alice Chokora who operates a shop and liquor store.

On May 1, at around 2pm, the officers approached Dumoluhle Ngwenya at Ranch Farm in Lower Gweru and confiscated his beer.