Online Reporter
Prosper Dembedza
Herald Correspondent
Harare Deputy Mayor Rosemary Muronda and former Harare South Member of Parliament, Shadreck Mashayamombe, have been granted bail of US$500 each on allegations of fraudulently selling council land.
The duo faced fraud charges when they appeared before Harare Magistrate Mrs Jessie Kufa.
Prosecutor Mr Oscar Madhume submitted that the State was not opposed to granting bail to the accused persons on the grounds that the complainant, Mavis Java, intends to withdraw the matter.
Mr Madhume also informed the court that the State has considered the presumption of innocence in light of the complainant’s intention to withdraw the charges against the pair.
The State proposed that each be granted bail of US$500 and to continue residing at their respective addresses. Mr Madhume further suggested that the pair report once a fortnight to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission offices every Friday and refrain from interfering with witnesses.
The former legislator is represented by his lawyers, Mrs Devoted Nyagano and Felistas Mwaonandini, while Muronda is represented by Mr Barnabas Kazembe.
Mashayamombe and Muronda were arrested on Wednesday by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC).
The complainant, Mavis Java, is a farmer and director of Maja Logistics, which specialises in construction and property development.
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The State alleges that during the period from April to June 2025, the accused persons approached the complainant and misrepresented to her that they were in a position to facilitate the allocation and sale of commercial stands in Newlands, specifically stand numbers 41770, 41771, 41772,
and the remainder of Stand 41567, located at the corner of ED Mnangagwa Road and Churchill Avenue, Harare, through companies associated with them and persons linked to the City of Harare.
The accused allegedly further misrepresented that the stands would be allocated through their companies—Aspire Elite Incorporated (Private) Limited, Diexodus Marketing (Private) Limited, Gemdale Investments (Private) Limited, and Clean Burn Energy (Private) Limited—and that upon allocation, the stands would be transferred to the complainant.
It is alleged that as a result of these misrepresentations, the complainant engaged her legal practitioner, Tawanda Maguwudze of Chasi and Maguwudze Law Firm, to ensure that any payments were made transparently and in his presence.
It is said that on 27 June 2025, the complainant proceeded to her legal practitioner’s offices together with Danai Mawire, Mashayamombe, and Muronda, where the accused persons demanded USD 300,000 each as consideration for the allocation of the stands.
It was allegedly agreed that USD 50 000 would be paid to each of them as a deposit, with the balance to be paid after the issuance of lease agreements.
The State alleges that on the same date, the legal practitioner disbursed USD 50,000 to each accused person at his offices.
All recipients signed acknowledgements of receipt and surrendered copies of their company documents, except for Gemdale Investments (Private) Limited, whose documents were not submitted.
The complainant was informed that the companies associated with the stands were allocated as follows: Gemdale Investments (Private) Limited to Rosemary Muronda, and Clean Burn Energy (Private) Limited to Mashayamombe.
It is alleged that on 15 December 2025, despite having paid the money, the complainant discovered that the same stands had been allocated by the council to Logara Properties, a company not owned by her.
It is further alleged that the accused persons sold the stands knowing that they were not the rightful owners, as they are still council properties.
The State alleges that the total prejudice suffered by the complainant as a result of the accused persons’ actions amounts to USD 100 000.
