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Yeukai Karengezeka
Court Correspondent
The trial of a suspected fraudster Allen Thindwa Mzamu who is alleged to be part of an organised syndicate that fleeced victims of over R1,2 million through misrepresentations, failed to kick off yesterday for a second time.
The development comes after Mzamu’s lawyer made an application demanding that the State provide them with CCTV footage of the bank where the accounts, which his client is purported to have been used to fleece people, were opened.
The lawyer Mr Casmea Muchichwa requested for original statements made by the complainants to the police as well as a police running diary.
Presiding magistrate Mr Clever Tsikwa ruled that the State liaise with the investigating officer to serve the defence counsel with the CCTV footage if it is available.
He however dismissed the other two applications and ordered that the matter be postponed to August 7 for trial commencement with or without the footage.
Mzamu is facing three counts of fraud and one of possession of articles for criminal use. In one of the charges, the complainant is Sitaz Health Care represented by its director Mr Zvakatarwa Makoto.
Prosecutor Mr Tendai Tapi is alleging that sometime in July 2019, Mzamu who identified himself as Mhandu started calling Isaac Nhindiri, who is the operations director for the company.Makoto later decided to buy a JCB TLB tractor loader and contacted Mzamu on November 28, 2019 and the latter confirmed that he had made a payment of R 953 925 for the tractor to JCB Polokwane.
JCB Polokwane confirmed the payment of the said amount through email which prompted Makoto to transfer ZWL1 363 538-61 into a fraudulently registered CBZ account number 02124698330010 belonging to Doctor Harrington and Associates.
When Makoto released the money, Mzamu immediately recalled the R953 925 he had deposited into JCB Polokwane’s Nedbank account 1016686161.
He then coverted the ZWL1 363 538-61 to buy United States dollars. The two accused persons transferred the money from the fraudulently registered CBZ bank account to individuals like Devin Sabapwe, Solomon Magodhiyana, Wilfred Takudzwa Kapiya and Tinashe Ngwerume where the two accused persons took turns collecting the United States dollars.
The court heard Sabapwe, Magodhiyana, Kapiya and Ngwerume were approached by the police and they implicated Mzamu and Raymond John.
Upon their arrest, detectives searched the motor vehicle which they were using, an Audi and recovered a CBZ bank card in respect of Doctor Richard James Harrington, slip with the personal identification number in respect of the card and a Hisense cellphone with an Econet line which was being used to call one of the witnesses.
Mzamu’s action caused Makoto to suffer a financial prejudice of R 953 925 and nothing was recovered.
In a separate charge, the State alleged that from July 1, 2019 to July 30, 2019 and at Robert Mugabe International airport, Harare, Mzamu unlawfully defrauded Prime Seed Co. (Pvt) represented by Betserai Nyapfere through misrepresentation.
He said he had free funds in South Africa and was able to pay R287 000 on behalf of Prime Seed Co (Pvt) Ltd to their supplier in South Africa, and they transferred ZWL$334 827 into a fraudulently registered CBZ Bank account number 24698330010 registered in the name of Dr Harrington. Nothing was recovered.
In another charge, on January 28, 2020 at Criminal Investigation Department Commercial Crime Division (N/R), Harare offices, Mzamu without lawful excuse knowingly had in possession a plastic Zimbabwe National Identity Card bearing Mzamu’s face but with details of Adam Andrew being articles for use in committing fraud.
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