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Court Reporter
The trial date for businessman-cum-musician Energy Mutodi accused of swindling desperate home seekers in Mutare and Harare of US$8 million has been set for March 28 with the State intending to call 22 000 witnesses.
Mutodi stands accused of swindling US$2 million from Mutare residents and US$6 million from residents in Harare.
The cases will be tried jointly.
In January, Mutodi filed an application for refusal of further remand and cancellation of seizure order arguing that investigations into the case were supposed to have been completed last year.
Mutodi allegedly formed the National Housing Development Trust in Mutare which he used to defraud the unsuspecting civil servants.
He lured civil servants into paying NHDT monthly instalments to buy land in Mutare’s Gimboki South housing project.
He promised to allocate the civil servants a stand each.
A total of 1 562 joined Mutodi’s NHDT and he started receiving varying amounts of cash deducted from the complainants’ salaries through a Salary Service Bureau stop order facility.
Mutodi reportedly converted US$1 699 620 to his own use, prejudicing the civil servants.
In Harare, Mutodi and his colleagues formed the NHDT and it was agreed it would appoint trustees to constitute a board which the musician chaired.
They registered a Notarial Deed of trust.
The purported objective of the trust was to acquire land in urban areas and towns and service it for its members and clients.
It is alleged Mutodi knew that the trust was created as a vehicle to fleece money from home seekers. Allegations are that a Kingdom Bank Trust account was opened and Mutodi was a signatory.
The trust account was meant to secure all contributions from members in the trust and the funds would be used to procure land, service it and build houses for clients under different schemes.
Mutodi invited membership from civil servants allegedly misrepresenting to them that he will procure, service and build houses for them once they joined and contributed money.
He wooed 16 000 civil servants to join and deducted their money through the SSB.
A total of $6 031 011 was deducted through SSB and channelled to a Kingdom Bank account.
Mutodi allegedly withdrew all the money and used it for other purposes.
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