British property tycoon Nicholas van Hoogstraten has been arrested in Zimbabwe on currency and pornography charges, official media reported.
Police raided the 64-year-old's home in northern Harare following a tip-off that he received rent for houses, apartments and shops he owns in Zimbabwe in hard currency, state radio reported.
During the swoop on Thursday, police found pornographic material featuring Van Hoogstraten and a 22-year-old Zimbabwean woman.
The alleged offences carry the penalty of a fine and forfeiture of money held in violation of the nation's currency laws.
State radio said Van Hoogstraten was found with about 35,000 US dollars (£17,700), small amounts of other hard currencies and 20 billion Zimbabwe dollars in cash - worth about 5,000 US dollars (£2,525) at the dominant illegal black market exchange rate.
The state Herald newspaper, in a front page report, said Van Hoogstraten owned more than 200 properties in Harare and the second city of Bulawayo.
Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena was quoted by the newspaper as saying that informants reported that Van Hoogstraten demanded rent in hard currency, including six months' payment in advance.
He is to appear in court on charges under currency laws relating to illegal dealing in hard currency and censorship laws on possession of pornography. No date for his arraignment was set, Mr Bvudzijena was quoted as saying.
Van Hoogstraten allegedly asked one police informant for 8,000 US dollars (£4,000) in advance on a property rental deal, Mr Bvudzijena was quoted as saying.
Van Hoogstraten, a frequent visitor to Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, was not available for comment at his home in the wealthy Harare suburb of Emerald Hill.
