Online Reporter
By Nyore Madzianike
A 40-YEAR-OLD bogus employer has been denied bail by the High Court after he allegedly duped four unsuspecting people in Harare’s central business district (CBD) with false promises that he could secure them jobs paying US$30 per hour.
George Kativhu, of Makomo in Epworth, was denied bail by High Court Judge Justice Gibson Mandaza, who dismissed his appeal against a magistrate’s decision to remand him in custody until his trial, since he was a flight risk.
Kativhu faces four counts of fraud.
The State claims that on April 3, 2025, he, along with two accomplices, who are still at large, approached Nanganidzai Tendai at the intersection of Robert Mugabe Road and First Street.
They allegedly offered her a part-time job packaging goods in a shop along Nelson Mandela Avenue.
Falling for the ruse, Nanganidzai was instructed to hand over her Tecno Spark 10 cellphone valued at US$75, along with US$75 in cash, under the pretext that these items were prohibited in the shop.
Kativhu gave her with an envelope to deposit her belongings and sign. In a deceptive twist, he handed her a different envelope, claiming it contained her valuables.
Instead, it held a tile shaped like a cellphone and scraps of paper designed to mimic her original items.
After the exchange, Kativhu told Nanganidzai to wait for five minutes while he attended to other matters, but he never returned.
Using a similar tactic, Kativhu and his accomplices also defrauded Dumisani Muza of US$400, Munashe Mhondiwa of US$200, and John Saurombe of US$300
Ms Karen Kunaka appeared for the State.
