OTTAWA — A spy caper involving an Ontario telecommunications firm fizzled when authorities in Zimbabwe suddenly dropped espionage charges.

Three Zimbabwean businessmen were accused of using a satellite system supplied by Juch-Tech Inc. of Hamilton, Ont., to transmit state secrets to Canada, the United States and Afghanistan.

They were charged with running afoul of the country's Official Secrets Act, which prohibits the communication of information useful to an enemy.

However, reports from the African country say the attorney general's office in Harare has decided to withdraw the spying charges.

The three men are still accused of violating Zimbabwe's Postal and Telecommunications Act.

Juch-Tech president Walt Juchniewicz says he's glad the case -- which grabbed big headlines in Africa -- is now considered a licensing issue, not a political matter.

"We're pleased it's not as drastic as it looked at the beginning," he said in an interview Thursday.

Juchniewicz says he went to Zimbabwe earlier this year to provide investment company Africom Holdings with Internet service through installation of a satellite dish.

Oliver Chiku of Global Satellite Systems -- who was hired by Juch-Tech to install the dish -- and two Africom employees initially faced up to 25 years in prison for allegedly breaching the secrets law.

Juchniewicz says his company has worked on projects in various African countries for a dozen years without problems. He remains somewhat mystified by the strange events.

"To this day I still don't know why these guys have gone through this."