Zimpost staffer up for fraud

Court Reporter
Zimpost licensing officer Simbarashe Kapuya (30) allegedly manipulated the Zimbabwe National Road Administration licensing system and under-charged motorists owing licensing fees, swindling the two firms of over US$200 000 in the process. Zimpost is a Zinara agent responsible for selling licensing discs to motorists.

Kapuya, of Cosmos Street Westgate, Bluffhill in Harare, is accused of creating fictitious entries of vehicles with licence fee arrears.

He appeared before Harare magistrate Mr Milton Serima on Friday facing charges of fraud and was remanded to December 15 on US$200 bail.

As part of his bail conditions, Kapuya was ordered to report twice every week at CID Serious Frauds, reside at the given address and not to interfere with State witnesses.

Complainant in the matter is Zimpost Causeway Post Office represented by its loss control officer Mr Phenias Yaso.

Prosecutor Ms Sharon Mashavira alleged that sometime in February this year, Kapuya hatched a plan to defraud Zimpost through the manipulation of the Zinara licensing system.

Kapuya allegedly targeted motor vehicles with arrears and created fictitious entries in the system, purporting as if they were new registries.

It is alleged that using the same trick, he under-charged motor vehicle owners who were owing Zimpost US$251 091 in licensing arrears.

The court heard that Kapuya only remitted US$35 040 to Zimpost, prejudicing the company of US$216 051.

In an effort to cover up the crime, Kapuya allegedly created dubious entries in the system to give a false impression that the motor vehicles with arrears were newly registered.

It is alleged that Kapuya went on to allocate new registration plates, motor vehicle chassis numbers and engine numbers, as a way of covering up the offence.

On June 19, Zimpost conducted a routine audit on the parastatal’s transactions, leading to the discovery of the scam.

The court heard that investigations carried out with the Central Vehicle Registry unearthed that all the registries and information created by Kapuya did not exist in their database.

The matter was reported to the police, leading to Kapuya’s arrest. Nothing was recover- ed.