Police link surging youth crime wave to drug abuse epidemic

Police warned that escalating drug and substance abuse is directly fueling a spike in theft, robbery, and violent crime among Zimbabwean youth. The law enforcement assessment points to a public health failure metastasizing into a security crisis, with economically marginalized young people turning to cheap synthetic drugs. The warning signals a potential crackdown, though previous punitive approaches have done little to dismantle the cross-border trafficking networks supplying the narcotics.