adminprocess of purchasing diamonds stone from Mbada Diamonds yesterday appeared in court charged with fraud.
Eric Nhodza was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Mr Don Ndirowei who remanded him out of custody to August 24 this year on US$200 bail.
He was ordered to report twice a week at CID Minerals Unit and not to interfere with witnesses.
Prosecutor Ms Svodai Kadivirire alleged that sometime in June this year Ms Sandy Chikosi approached her friend Mr Bret Buckley, a director of a local company, to obtain information about the purchase of diamonds in Zimbabwe.
Ms Chikosi told Mr Buckley that she wanted to relay the information to her relatives in Israel.
Mr Buckley, it is alleged, outlined all the requirements and procedures on a piece of paper and gave it to her.
On July 13, the three potential diamond buyers arrived in Zimbabwe from Israel and booked into a lodge in Belgravia.
Ms Chikosi visited them and called Mr Buckley who received the required documents to purchase diamonds before returning to their country two days later.
On a later date, Mr Buckley went to Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe on his company business.
He met Bernard Wamambo who is still at large and purported that he could facilitate the smooth viewing and purchasing of diamonds.
On July 21, it is alleged, the buyers from Israel returned and were approached by Nhodza who was in the company of three others and masqueraded as agents before promising to speed the purchase of diamonds from Mbada Diamonds.
The four allegedly misrepresented to the foreigners, Chikosi and Buckley that Mbada wanted US$20 000 to speed up the process.
On July 24, the State says, Wamambo was given the money in the company of Nhodza and they shared it.
As a result the complainants were prejudiced US$20 000 as they returned home empty handed after failing to buy the diamonds.
They made a report that led to Nhodza’s arrest.
Online Reporter