Online Reporter
Zvikomborero Parafini
A retired soldier reportedly lost his lump sum payment to a fraudster who hacked into his bank account, a Harare court heard yesterday.
The suspect Tigere Dube is a former soldier and was once the complainant Forward Mapfunde’s neighbour.
He was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Ruth Moyo.
Allegations are that on September 23 last year, Mapfunde received his lump sum amount of US$13 003.34 and ZWL$ 14 041 into his National Building Society (NBS) Nostro and Zig accounts.
The accounts were linked to his EcoCash number.
Between September 28 and 30, Dube and his accomplices who are at large, acquired a copy of fake National Identity Card bearing Mapfunde’s particulars and inserted Dube’s face.
Dube allegedly approached Econet Rushinga and used the fake ID to replace Mapfunde’s Econet sim card.
Using the fraudulently acquired sim card, Dube and his accomplices went on to download a NBS Bank Mobile application and linked it to the phone number in question.
Furthering their fraudulent activities, the gang went on to transfer Mapfunde’s funds from NBS Nostro and ZIG bank account numbers into the Ecocash account belonging to him which was now in their control.
Thereafter they withdrew money at various Econet agents in Harare.
They transferred the ZIG component to various mobile money apps they had access to.
On September 30, Mapfunde experienced network challenges and visited an Econet Shop in Harare where his line was re-activated.
After reactivation of the said line, he regained control of his bank account and discovered the offence and approached police.
