Local board clerk appeal against conviction and sentence dismissed

FORMER Lupane Local Government board finance cashier Nobuhle Nyathi (35) who was charged with 22 counts involving fraud, theft and forgery, but was convicted on 10 counts and sentenced to a total of 30 months in jail and acquitted on 10 other counts due to lack of evidence had his appeal against conviction and sentence dismissed.

The court ordered that he commences serving her jail term after she failed to prosecute her appeal.

Nyathi faced 15 counts of fraud, five counts of theft both from the Kusile Rural District Council (KRDC) and Lupane Local board and two counts of violating the Zimbabwe School Examination Council (Zimsec) Act.

Nyathi denied all counts when she appeared before Lupane magistrate Aelene Munamati, but was later convicted on 10 counts after a full trial.

For the 10 counts, Nyathi was sentenced to 60 months in jail but 10 months were suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour. Another 10 months were suspended on condition that she restitutes the complainants a total of $773.

On Wednesday she appeared before the same magistrate who then ruled that she must commence serving her jail term since her appeal against conviction and sentence lacked merit due to her failure to prosecute it.

Nyathi was first employed as a receptionist clerk at the KRDC on November 11, 2007 after she applied using a forged Zimsec ‘O' Level certificate.

She was later transferred to the Lupane Local Board as a finance clerk on the strength of her forged qualifications.

Denying the charges, Nyathi had told the court that she was working with other officials at the local board and at the KRDC and she is not the one who defrauded the institutions.