Online Reporter
Prosper Dembedza
Herald Correspondent
A 60-YEAR-OLD man has appeared in court on allegations of stealing US$18 450 in three botched raw material supply deals from South Africa.
Phillimon Maruta pleaded not guilty to three counts of theft of trust property when he appeared before Harare magistrate Mr Artwell Sanyatwe.
It is the State’s case that on March 26, 2021, the complainant, Sandra Jeche, deposited US$5 300 into Maruta’s CABS account.
The money was for Maruta to facilitate payment for raw materials from her suppliers in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The court heard that after receiving the funds, Maruta promised to facilitate the payment before converting the money to his personal use, and nothing was recovered.
On the second count, which occurred on March 27, 2021, Jeche sent her son to deposit US$11 000 into Maruta’s account to facilitate payment for additional raw materials from her suppliers from Johannesburg, South Africa.
After receiving the payment, Maruta promised to make the payments and arrange transportation of raw materials from South Africa to Harare, but instead, he converted the money to personal use.
The court heard that to date, Maruta has failed to deliver the raw materials or return the money to the complainant.
The court heard that Maruta used the same modus operandi and stole US$2 150 from the complainant for similar transactions.
