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Marconati hid in mine shaft for 2 days to evade arrest
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Controversial businessman Francesco Marconati allegedly spent two days hiding inside a mine shaft in Matabeleland North's Inyathi area in an attempt to evade arrest, it has emerged.
Marconati (66), who is awaiting trial on charges of illegal possession of firearms, is said to have concealed himself underground at Duration Gold Limited (DGL) 5 Mine while police officers lay in wait to arrest him at the mine gate.
Sources said he later sneaked out of the shaft through a weighbridge before being driven away in a Honda Fit, successfully evading police who had been hunting for him for more than 10 days over fresh fraud allegations.
He was eventually arrested on Friday in Harare on fraud charges after handing himself in, having reportedly run out of options. Marconati was required to report to Inyathi Police Station as part of his bail conditions following his arrest in December last year.
The latest charges stem from a complaint lodged by DGL 5 alternate directors Yan Bo and Ke Wang.
Bo alleges that Marconati, together with Australian national Mark Andrew Hughes—who has since fled to South Africa—illegally took over the gold mine and unlawfully allocated shares to themselves.
The alleged offence came to light on December 30 when Bo visited the Registrar of Companies and discovered that Marconati and Hughes had re-registered DGL 5 Mine, appointing themselves as the sole directors.
"Such actions by Francesco Marconati and Mark Andrew Hughes amount to fraud," Bo said in an affidavit.
He stated that at the time of the re-registration, Marconati and Hughes had failed to lawfully enforce a court order obtained under case number HCBC 9/25.
"This means that the lawful directors of Investment Number 5 remained Xing Ming Chang, Li Song and Ke Wang," Bo said.
Bo further explained that although Marconati and Hughes had obtained a court order, they failed to execute it as required, including securing the necessary signatures from the Registrar of Companies or the Sheriff of Zimbabwe.
He said the two later attempted to amend the court order through another application but withdrew it after it failed. An urgent application for execution pending appeal was also dismissed.
"This therefore meant that the directors remained as Xing Ming Chang, Li Song and Ke Wang," Bo said.
He accused Marconati and Hughes of unlawfully removing legally appointed directors while a separate court case concerning the mine's shareholding was still pending.
Marconati is expected to appear at the Harare Magistrates' Court on Saturday.
His earlier arrest for illegal possession of firearms followed the fatal shooting of a local man by one of his security guards.
Villagers in Inyathi have previously attempted to protest against Marconati over the shooting incident but were reportedly blocked twice by police, whom they accused of shielding the businessman.
Marconati (66), who is awaiting trial on charges of illegal possession of firearms, is said to have concealed himself underground at Duration Gold Limited (DGL) 5 Mine while police officers lay in wait to arrest him at the mine gate.
Sources said he later sneaked out of the shaft through a weighbridge before being driven away in a Honda Fit, successfully evading police who had been hunting for him for more than 10 days over fresh fraud allegations.
He was eventually arrested on Friday in Harare on fraud charges after handing himself in, having reportedly run out of options. Marconati was required to report to Inyathi Police Station as part of his bail conditions following his arrest in December last year.
The latest charges stem from a complaint lodged by DGL 5 alternate directors Yan Bo and Ke Wang.
Bo alleges that Marconati, together with Australian national Mark Andrew Hughes—who has since fled to South Africa—illegally took over the gold mine and unlawfully allocated shares to themselves.
The alleged offence came to light on December 30 when Bo visited the Registrar of Companies and discovered that Marconati and Hughes had re-registered DGL 5 Mine, appointing themselves as the sole directors.
"Such actions by Francesco Marconati and Mark Andrew Hughes amount to fraud," Bo said in an affidavit.
"This means that the lawful directors of Investment Number 5 remained Xing Ming Chang, Li Song and Ke Wang," Bo said.
Bo further explained that although Marconati and Hughes had obtained a court order, they failed to execute it as required, including securing the necessary signatures from the Registrar of Companies or the Sheriff of Zimbabwe.
He said the two later attempted to amend the court order through another application but withdrew it after it failed. An urgent application for execution pending appeal was also dismissed.
"This therefore meant that the directors remained as Xing Ming Chang, Li Song and Ke Wang," Bo said.
He accused Marconati and Hughes of unlawfully removing legally appointed directors while a separate court case concerning the mine's shareholding was still pending.
Marconati is expected to appear at the Harare Magistrates' Court on Saturday.
His earlier arrest for illegal possession of firearms followed the fatal shooting of a local man by one of his security guards.
Villagers in Inyathi have previously attempted to protest against Marconati over the shooting incident but were reportedly blocked twice by police, whom they accused of shielding the businessman.
Source - The Standard
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