Clerk arrested for stealing US$17,000

A cashbook clerk employed by National Foods Limited has been brought before the Harare magistrates' court, facing allegations of defrauding his employer to the tune of US$17,000. The case was represented by Bhoki Nyambo.

The accused, Cale Sibanda (57), appeared before Magistrate Dennis Mangosi this week and was granted bail of US$200, with a remand date set for October 10 after the State agreed to the bail request.

According to prosecutor Zebidiah Bofu, between August 2022 and June this year, Sibanda allegedly deceived his superiors by deliberately excluding his name from petty cash expense schedules and stock take allowances. After receiving management approval for these payments, he would then manipulate electronic records to add his name and that of an accomplice, Nyarai Gumberu, along with their MyCash account numbers.

Subsequently, Sibanda allegedly sent payment instructions to MyCash. Upon discovering these fraudulent activities, National Foods confronted Sibanda and invited him to provide an explanation. Instead, Sibanda chose to resign immediately. Nyambo reported the incident to the police, leading to Sibanda's arrest. National Foods incurred losses of US$17,783, and no funds were recovered.