Online Reporter
Trish Mukwazo, [email protected]
AN elderly couple from Bulawayo’s Pelandaba suburb, accused of going on a spending spree after exploiting a technical glitch at Stanbic Bank Zimbabwe and allegedly embezzling over US$30 000, will appear in court on February 25 for judgment.
Frank and Fransisca Netsai Sibanda face 47 counts of theft, accused of a spending spree both in Zimbabwe and South Africa. The alleged incident came to light after a routine investigation by the bank’s forensic department, which uncovered discrepancies in the bank’s records, leading to the couple’s arrest.
The State closed its case after calling two witnesses. The couple, both 65, appeared before regional magistrate Mrs Dambudzo Malunga on Tuesday, who remanded them out of custody to February 25 for judgment.
The duo was released on US$500 bail each, with conditions including surrendering their passports to the court, reporting twice a week to the police commercial crimes unit, and residing at their given address.
Prosecutor, Mr Owen Mugari, told the court that on or around February 5 last year, Francisca opened a Silver Banking segment account at Stanbic Bank on Joshua Nkomo Street, after her daughter, Rudo Sibanda, falsely claimed that Francisca worked for her company, Cominergy Construction Mining Energy, which operates from Harare.
“The first accused was then issued with a Chip and PIN Visa Card, number 40691XXXX0711, to transact on her account. On April 5, the first accused made a POS purchase of US$17,95 via a Steward Bank ZiG POS machine at National Foods Bulawayo, and the transaction failed.
“As part of the normal interbank failed POS transaction settlement, Steward Bank processed the reversal through ZimSwitch with an overstated ZWG amount of 579 116,21, which was mistakenly auto-credited to the first accused’s USD account, resulting in US$40 850,86 being deposited,” Mr Moyo said
He said that after receiving the funds, the Sibandas embarked on a spending spree locally and in South Africa, including visits to lavish food and beverage markets in the upmarket Sandton suburb.
The couple, according to the State, also visited Maboneng Precinct in Johannesburg, described as a vibrant urban neighbourhood and a hub of creative activity, with a mix of restaurants, coffee shops, clothing boutiques, art galleries, retail outlets, and studios.
“The offence was later discovered by the complainant, who found that, between 30 April and May 1, 2024, the first accused’s Visa Card made cash withdrawals of US$2 025 at Stanbic Bank in Bulawayo and several ATM and POS transactions amounting to US$32 085,47 in South Africa,” Mr Mugari said.
He said a police report was made, leading to their arrest.
“The total amount stolen is US$34 110,47, and nothing was recovered,” Mr Mugari said.
