Zimbabwe cricketer Brendan Taylor's wife was mugged outside their home in Harare earlier this week, with Taylor tweeting about the incident and urging residents of the city to remain vigilant amid reports of increased crime.
"Just had an alarming situation outside my house," Taylor tweeted. "I was waiting for my wife's return in my driveway. I started hearing her screaming about 100m from my gate, she was getting mugged by 4 armed men. I ran outside and they sped away in red Honda Fit."
"I managed to get my mother-in-law, and she actually had a firearm on her," Taylor told ESPNcricinfo. "We decided to try and locate the criminals, but they were nowhere to be seen. And it's probably a matter for the police anyway. They tried to steal the vehicle, but Kelly [Taylor's wife] fought them off and refused to hand over the keys. So they snatched her handbag."
Local media has reported an increase in crime in the country since the intensification of load-shedding in Harare this week, with criminals apparently taking advantage of the power failures in the capital city's suburbs.
"Unfortunately we're getting more and more of this in Zimbabwe," Taylor said. "Things are getting desperate and people are genuinely struggling. We're experiencing about 8, 9, 10 hours a day of power cuts. It's either all morning or all night. So there are easy hiding places for these guys to set people up, watch their movements and jump at an opportunity."
Avondale Police station, which is the station closest to Taylor's house, has also taken to social media to urge residents of the area to be on high alert.
"We note with concern the crime activity in our area in the last 8 weeks," read a message on the station's social media page. "Unregistered vehicles continue to expose our community to crime and we now are appealing to all our Avondale residents and Security Structures, Neighbourhood Watches, Whatsapp Media Platforms to be on high alert for any suspicious individuals or vehicles."