adminPrince Golide Maposa
A 55-year old Harare man, who allegedly devised a strategy to ‘doctor’ Ecocash transaction messages before duping businesses of over $21 600, has had his day in court.
The ‘crafty’ Samson Chome appeared before Harare Magistrate Mr Francis Mapfumo, charged with fraud as defined in the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act section 136. Chome is now in remand prison until May 27 after the magistrate denied him bail as punishment for having committed similar offences while on trial on a related offence.
The State represented by Mr Wishes Nziradzemhuka claim that Chome, last year, defrauded various companies that include Windmill and Gain Cash and Carry Supermarkets.
It is further alleged that Chome pounced on three Gain Cash and Carry Supermarket branches on different dates managing to illegally purchase groceries worth over $13 000.
According to State papers, in July last year Chome misrepresented to (Gain Cash and Carry supermarket Graniteside branch manager) Nemaunga Kudzanayi that he wanted to buy Huletts brown sugar valued at $4 995 using Ecocash.
When Samson Chome did this he knew quite well that he was misrepresenting to Kudzanayi that there was money in his Ecocash wallet (after) he had just edited an old Ecocash message by inserting Gain Cash and Carry Graniteside branch Ecocash agent merchant code and amount.
It is further stated that on later dates, Chome used the same modus operandi to defraud the same supermarket branches in Chitungwiza and Highfield of $3 368 and $4 995 respectively.
Chome is also alleged to have conned Windmill of $8 250 in illegal fertilizer purchase.
In denying the accused bail, Magistrate Mr Mapfumo said: “The chain of events shows you (Chome) have the ability to commit the same crime again, hence there is need for the court to protect the public.”
Online Reporter