daniel chigunwe
Zvikomborero Parafini
HARARE lawyer Agnes Chatsama spent the weekend in remand prison pending a bail hearing in a fraud case involving a property worth US$800 000.
Chatsama appeared in court together with Ariginero Muzeya.
The complainant is Newcorner Emporium (Pvt) Ltd, represented by Dennis Patrikios.
Muzeya is a tenant of Newcorner Emporium.
The court heard that on October, 3 1996, the late Costas Patrikios transferred a certain piece of property, Stand Number 804 Salisbury Township, measuring 595 square metres, into the name of Newcorner Emporium (Pvt) Ltd, a family company in which he was a director.
Sometime in 2001, the directors of Newcorner Emporium left the country at different intervals, leaving the management of the property in the care of a real estate agent.
On December 4 2021, the board of directors returned to the country intending to renovate the property and found out that Mireya had become a director and shareholder in their company without their knowledge or a board meeting resolution.
In response, civil proceedings challenging the directorship and shareholding of Muzeya started and a separate report of fraud was filed to the ZRP Commercial Crimes Department.
Muzeya engaged his lawyer, Chatsama, and they went on to sell the property and fraudulently transferred it to the trustees of a trust for US$251 368.
The two proceeded to the Department of Deeds and filed a fraudulent Capital Gains Tax Certificate.
There was also a fake company resolution dated February 27, 2024, purporting that Newcorner Emporium had duly authorised Chatsama to transfer the property.
The Department of Deeds acted upon the misrepresentation and registered the Deed of Transfer 3342/2024 dated August 2, 2024.
Investigations established that the board resolution produced was fake as no board meeting took place.
No record existed with ZIMRA pertaining to the sale of the property between Newcorner Emporium and the trustees.
Newcorner Emporium lost its property worth US$800 000.
The duo is back in court today for their bail application.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter