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Elizabeth Tsuro, Midlands Reporter
A Mvuma Court accountant, who was last month slapped with a five-year jail sentence after forging a magistrate signature to withdraw money from a bank, was convicted again for embezzling court funds.
Sungano Kubiku, 36, from Mvuma who was an accountant at the Mvuma Circuit
Court, pleaded guilty to misappropriating $190 and Gweru Magistrate Tayengwa Chibanda sentenced him to an effective five months in prison.
Magistrate Chibanda had sentenced Kubiku to 12 months in prison but suspended three months for five years on condition of good behaviour.
Four months were further suspended on condition he restitutes the court.
Magistrate Chibanda said: “You stole public funds and benefitted as nothing was recovered. Therefore we need to remove that benefit,” he said.
Prosecuting, Lloyd Mavhisa told the court that on November 20 last year, Sibongisi Tshuma went to Mvuma Circuit Court for court orderly duties.
She took with her $190 which had been receipted at Mvuma Police Station as deposit fines money.
“When she arrived at the court, she handed over the money and the charge sheet to Kubiku and left him to write the receipt for the money,” he said.
Mavhisa said Kubiku did not write the receipt, but converted the money to his own use.
The court heard that Tshuma later asked for the receipt but Kubiku gave her a fake one.
“On December 17, Mvuma Police Station officer in charge discovered that the receipt was cancelled and alerted the Provincial Accountant, Shayawabaya,” said Mavhisa.
The court heard the money could not be found anywhere in the receipt books and safe and the matter was reported to the police.
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