Online Reporter
Yeukai Karengezeka
Court Correspondent
A director of Simukai Financial Services, a Bureau de Change, along with her accomplice, has appeared in court on charges of defrauding a client of US$97 110 through a scheme involving fake proof of payments.
The accused, Rumbidzai Bushu and Aleck Mufambi, were brought before Harare magistrate Mr Tapiwa Kuhudzai, who granted them bail of US$400 each. The case has been postponed to next week for referral to trial court.
Complainant, Ms Marjorie Kennan of Kennan Properties, alleges that the duo misled her into believing they had the necessary Zimbabwean dollar (ZiG) amounts to settle her council bills and an endowment payment.
Prosecutor Mr Takudzwa Jambawu, said the incident occurred on June 12.
Ms Kennan contacted Bushu to inquire about buying ZiG 491 020.70, equivalent to US$14 657, for her council bills, as well as ZiG 2 762,144, equivalent to US$82 452, for an endowment contribution.
Bushu and Mufambi, acting in concert, assured her that they could provide the required Zimbabwean dollar amounts.
Trusting them, Ms Kennan handed over US$97 110 in cash to Bushu.
In return, Bushu provided her with purported proof of payment documents allegedly from a Stanbic Bank account for ZiG 662 144 and a First Capital Bank account for ZiG 2 100 000.
These documents were later discovered to be forgeries, and Bushu also issued a receipt from Simukai Financial Services.
On June 17, Ms Kennan learned she had been defrauded after being informed by a city planner that the payments had not been credited to the City of Harare’s accounts.
Further checks with Stanbic Bank and First Capital Bank confirmed the transaction records were fake.
After Ms Kennan reported the matter to the police, Bushu tried to cover up the fraud by making partial payments of ZiG 662 144 and ZiG$491 020 directly to the City of Harare.
However, investigations revealed that the ZiG 2 100 000 transaction with First Capital Bank was fraudulent and had no corresponding records. Similarly, the Stanbic Bank account and reference numbers provided were non-existent.
Further inquiries established that Simukai Financial Services, which Bushu claimed was a registered Bureau de Change, had ceased to be licensed by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Financial Surveillance Unit in December 2023.
To date, only US$37 110 of the US$97 110 has been recovered.
