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Tendai Rupapa Senior Court Reporter
Politician Mr Justin Zvandasara has been convicted of fraud involving US$4 million after he grabbed 84 000 hectares of land belonging to Zanu-PF legislator for Mutare South Cde Nyasha Chikwinya in Hatcliffe, Harare.Zvandasara went on to allocate the land to unsuspecting home seekers under his housing co-operative.
He was jointly charged with Tichaona Suruware who was also convicted, while their co-accused Blessing Sigareta was acquitted.
Zvandasara and Suruware will be sentenced on Monday next-week.
Regional magistrate Mr Temba Kuwanda convicted Zvandasara and Suruware after a fully contested trial.
He said there was overwhelming evidence linking the pair to the commission of the offence.
“Zvandasara lied that he owned the land, yet he did not have relevant documents to claim the land and in so doing he intended to cause
Harare North Housing Co-operatives Union to act on his misrepresentation,” said Mr Kuwanda.
“Although there was no evidence to show that complainants suffered any financial prejudice, it is, however, clear that there was potential prejudice.”
In mitigation, Zvandasara and Suruware pleaded for the court’s leniency, arguing that they did not benefit from the offence.
In aggravation, prosecutor Mr Oliver Marwa called for a custodial sentence, arguing that the pair committed a serious offence.
“Your Worship, the State is proposing a short and sharp sentence,” he said.
“Community service will trivialise the offence. We propose a sentence of seven years in prison, four of which may be suspended on usual conditions.
“The offence is a double aged sword in the sense that the so-called illegal occupants on the complainant’s property suffered considerable prejudice since they invested a lot.”
Zvandasara of Plot 7 Weston Glen Forest is the president of an unregistered Harare North Housing Co-operative Union, while Cde Chikwinya is the director of Pilgrims Rest Properties, which specialises in property development.
During the land redistribution exercise, Cde Chikwinya was allocated Pilgrims Rest Farm measuring 150 hectares.
But Government demarcated the land into two and the other half was allocated to Mama Mafuyana Housing Co-operative.
Alternative land for Cde Chikwinya’s company was also identified at Hatcliffe North Phase two.
Cde Chikwinya obtained a development permit number SL818 from the Department of Physical Planning.
On June 21 2011, Cde Chikwinya and the Ministry of Local Government, Rural and Urban Development signed a memorandum of agreement allocating the land and transferring administration into her name.
She started servicing the land, subdividing it into low, medium and high-density stands under layout plan number HOE27.
Zvandasara and Suruware who knew about the project misrepresented to unsuspecting home seekers that they had lawfully acquired the same piece of land.
They sold 496 stands to home seekers who immediately occupied the land.
In the second count, the complainant is the chairman of Alpha Developers, Mr Jonathan Gapare, who is said to be also in the business of developing properties.
Mr Gapare applied to Government for a piece of land adjacent to that of Cde Chikwinya for land development by his company Alpha Developers.
Using the same modus operandi, Zvandasara and Suruware sold 324 stands belonging to Mr Gapare.
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