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Nyore Madzianike
Senior Court Reporter
The accused Chitungwiza land baron Fredrick Mabamba, finally arrested on charges of illegally parcelling out land worth well over US$16 million and belonging to Chitungwiza Municipality, was yesterday denied bail after the court found he was likely to abscond.
Harare regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje noted that there was overwhelming evidence against him, which might induce him to flee.
Mabamba has been active in selling Chitungwiza land for years, but had avoided arrest as investigators were continually shown paperwork and letters of authority allowing him to operate.
But now he is before the courts.
Miss Audrey Chogumaira, who is appearing for the State along with Miss Shella Mupindu, had opposed to granting of his bail and that while he had a case at the High Court, this was on a different matter.
Circumstances leading to his arrest are that since 1999, Mabamba, then a councillor and deputy mayor, abused his office and parcelled out 15 stands without authority and pocketed US$13 724 000.
He allegedly created another 200 residential stands in St Mary’s which he sold for US$600 000, then 230 on wetlands in Zengeza 4 worth US$1 058 000, then another 57 stands in Zengeza 4 which he sold at US$3 000 each, then a batch of 400 stands that he sold in Unit A, then two stands for car sales in Unit B sold for US$44 000.
In Unit C, Mabamba allegedly sold 120 stands, while another 120 were allocated to people in Unit N and F, with one of the beneficiaries having exchanged the stand for his Toyota Gaia.
In the lengthening list of deals he is accused of selling 76 stands in Unit G, 211 in Unit J and 151 in Unit K and then the land where Watershed High School was built.
The list goes on, with 227 stands in Unit L worth US$1 589 000, stands for his parents, stands carved out of town lands for his schools and another 150 stands for home seekers.
In Unit N, Mabamba is said to have allocated 284 stands and created a stand for a hospital plus another 1 671 stands for his housing cooperative named United We Stand Multi-Purpose.
He also allegedly sold 150 stands in Unit P, with the other stands subdivided to accommodate a church stand.
In all these sales of hundreds of stands, the beneficiaries were not given offer letters, according to the State.
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