Online Reporter
Yeukai Karengezeka-Court Correspondent
A HARARE man, Gabriel Kundai Dzangare, appeared in court last Friday facing multiple counts of fraud after allegedly masterminding a scam involving fake sponsorship certificates to go to the United Kingdom.
Gabriel Kundai Dzangare is accused of conniving with two accomplices, Isheunesu Muzora and Ottilia Kudzanai Zenengeni, who are already on remand, to defraud victims of a total of £20 500.
He appeared before Harare provincial magistrate Ms Ruth Moyo charged with three counts of fraud.
He was remanded in custody to today for bail application.
According prosecutor Mr Takudzwa Jambawu, the trio allegedly created a WhatsApp group using United Kingdom mobile numbers and advertised a fictitious company that purportedly facilitated certificates of sponsorship for those seeking opportunities abroad.
The fraudulent scheme targeted unsuspecting victims, who were convinced to pay substantial amounts of money for the promised certificates.
In the first case, the complainant, Anna Chari (32) of Glen View 7, Harare, was lured into the scam after responding to the WhatsApp advertisement. Dzangare, posing as a company director, allegedly assured her that the company could provide the required sponsorship certificates for £6 000.
Chari sourced the money from her brother in the UK and met Dzangare and one of his accomplices at a restaurant in central Harare, where she handed over the cash.
Dzangare provided her with an affidavit acknowledging receipt of the money and promising delivery of the certificate within two weeks. However, the certificate was never provided, and Chari lost £6 000.
In a similar case, Trymore Manyange (34) of Waterfalls, Harare, also fell victim to the scam.
Manyange, who works in waste collection and recycling, responded to the same advert and was similarly assured that the company could produce a sponsorship certificate.
After sourcing £6 000 from his brother-in-law in the UK, Manyange was instructed to have the money deposited into a UK bank account allegedly linked to Dzangare.
He later met Dzangare to sign an affidavit confirming the payment. Like Chari, Manyange was promised the certificate within two weeks, but it never materialised.
The third complainant, Paida Magore (30), a teacher at Shalom Elite Junior School in Harare, was also duped by Dzangare and his accomplices.
Magore sourced £8 500 from her sister in the UK, who deposited the money into the same UK bank account used in the second case.
Dzangare provided Magore with an affidavit acknowledging receipt of the money and promising to deliver the sponsorship certificate within two weeks.
However, the certificate was never provided, and Magore was left out of pocket.
The scam fell apart when the two accomplices, Muzora and Zenengeni, were arrested and implicated Dzangare as the mastermind.
