Online Reporter
Zvikomborero Parafini
CLAD in a khaki prison garb, and in spectacles, disgraced former Chitungwiza housing director, Alex Mukweva, walked into court yesterday for the LATEST fraud case in which he stands accused of duping a businesswoman who splashed US$40,000 to buy a stand in a fraudulent deal.
Mukweva is serving jail for corruption and has been a regular visitor to court in a number of similar cases in which many people were duped of their money when they bought ghost stands in Chitungwiza.
This time, even Mukweva’s wife, Abigail, has been drawn into this criminal enterprise and is also being accused of duping businesswoman, Monica Makombe, of US$40,000.
The couple used their company, Alvis Agro Mining Venture (Pvt) Ltd, and connived with Kennedy Dube, the council’s district officer, and Blessing Shamba, the revenue officer, in this deal.
They appeared before Harare magistrate Ruth Moyo.
Allegations are that in October 2021, Makumbe was looking for a stand and was introduced to Shamba who deals in stands, through a relative.
The relative then referred her to Mukweva who was the acting Housing Director of Chitungwiza Town Council.
Makumbe subsequently met Mukweva at Chikwanha Shopping Centre, where he offered her a commercial stand located at DamView, St Mary’s Chitungwiza, measuring 5000 square meters, valued at US$38 000. It is alleged that Shamba, Mukweva and his wife showed her the stand and she expressed her interest.
On October 27, 2021, the three met Makumbe at the corner of 7th Street and Kwame Nkrumah Avenue, where she paid US$38,000 and signed an Agreement of Sale prepared by Sky Ryan Properties Estate Agency.
It is alleged that Shamba promised to provide her with a Lease Agreement and requested additional payments o fUS$600 for processing the lease, with US$400 allocated for the lease processing and US$200 for changing the lease registration into her name.
In 2022, Makombe requested the Lease Agreement from Shamba but Dube, instead, drafted a fake Agreement of Sale in the name of Alvis Agro Mining Venture (PVT) Ltd.
Despite repeated follow-ups, the gang continued to give excuses regarding the change of the lease into Makombe’s name.
Makombe later discovered from the Chitungwiza Town Council’s Housing Department that all stands created in 2019 were on hold and under investigations, indicating that she had been duped.
As a result of these misrepresentations, Makombe suffered financial prejudice amounting approximately US$40,000 and nothing was recovered. Makombe also claims she was duped of US$13,100 when she was sold three ghost stands by Munyaradzi Kapanga, who is in court facing fraud charges.
She claims Kapanga allegedly posed to her as a former councillor of the Chitungwiza Town Council and sold her the three ghost stands.
This means that, in total, she lost US$53,100 and nothing was recovered.
daniel chigunwe