Arron Nyamayaro
THEY have the striking good looks which can win beauty contests around the world and they both charmed their way into the hearts of thousands of Zimbabwean men from their prison cells.
Tamara Taylor Simone (20), a drug trafficker from the United Kingdom, and Karoline Silver Mafa (23), a Brazilian who was arrested for allegedly trafficking drugs, made headlines from Chikurubi Female Prison for their good looks.
Tamara and her British companion, Tihaise Darlin Elisha (18), were sentenced to nine years in prison in July after being caught with 124 packs of cannabis (dagga) worth US$669,000 at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport.
The pair’s downfall began on May 1, when detectives from the CID Drugs and Narcotics Unit received intelligence that foreign nationals were smuggling drugs into Zimbabwe aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight 873.
Upon arrival, officers monitored the suspects as they collected four suitcases from the carousel.
A thorough search revealed 124 packs of dagga stashed inside all four suitcases, with a total weight of 66.9kg. The two were immediately arrested and taken into custody. Last week, Tamara was transformed into an internet sensation when her photo, in prison garb at the Chikurubi Female Prison, was published in local newspapers.
She has been attracting a number of male admirers across the country with many of them willing to see beyond her criminal connections and concentrating only on her beautiful looks.
Remarkably, some are even saying she is too beautiful to commit any crime.
She attended the premiere of the movie, “Lost in Ashes,” which was penned by Mai TT during her time at the same prison.
Tamara expressed her gratitude to Mai TT.
“At times, you cry, thinking this is the end of me but this movie watered my soul,” she said.
“I regret engaging in the marijuana deals that led me to this incarceration, but now I have hope.
“Thank you Mai TT for the film in a language that resonates with me, it truly opened my eyes.”
She is not the first prisoner to send Zimbabwean men crazy with her beauty.
Karoline was the first to charm the local men when her photograph, in prison garb at Chikurubi Female Prison, was published in local newspapers three years ago.
The Brazilian was arrested at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport on April 2, 2022, after disembarking from an Ethiopian Airways flight.
Karoline, from the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, was arrested for dealing in heroin.
However, she was found not guilty after a full trial in July 2022 but it then emerged that she had no passport and money to return home and she was stranded at Chikurubi Female Prison.
Karoline was captured on an H-Metro video featuring Mai TT, who was leading inmates in song and dance during a party, at the prison.
She is now back home in Brazil but not before sending thousands of local men going crazy about her beauty.
This is how some of our male readers reacted to her photograph:
Haaaaa pane yellow uyo I will perish hangu. Shadhaya tisiye hedu tikanomirira case yake mwana uyo. – Guy from CHIRUMHANZU.
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Haaaa uyu akangopomerwa mhosva yaasina because manakiro acho mnn. Anway akabuda ndotoendawo naye Brazil. – Pregnant Boy.
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Even if akapindira kuuraya boyfriend yake, boyfriend ndiyo yanga iri wrong. – Vokal Bekesa.
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The way she is beautiful, if my husband decides to leave me for her, tirikuenda tese. I also want cute step kids. – MC DEBY.
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How long is her sentence? Torai henyu inini ndomupedzesera sentence yake, she deserves nice things. – Tendeseka.
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My soulmate is behind bars. Tichaswero oneswa moto ne love izvo ma soulmates edu ari mumajeri. – Six_papi.
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It was supposed to be Mai TT’s moment, but that lady with a smile lamabhanzi she snatched the spotlight. – Costa_cnm.
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Ndakaenda ku remand time isiriyo mhani. – Ayanda Mponda.
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I question the morality of some Zimbabwean men. They are drooling over some light-skinned jailbird in the background. Granted she is pretty, but I would want to know her crime even after rehabilitation. – JamesBaeLes007
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I know she was framed, she is innocent. Free her or tomorrow we start protesting. – Hatiperi Wacho.
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As Zimbabwean men, we have all agreed to trade our freedom for hers. She was framed, she is innocent, free her. – MukomanaAriFine.
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The Love of my life, I will wait for you. – Tinashe Joia.
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Mwoyo wakutoda iyeye wamaona mujeri 4, 5 seconds idzodzo. Haa maZimba tine drama. Zvekuti maari imomo akapindirei hapana azvipa nzeve nenguva. – Tinashe Mutarisi.
