Man in court over 21 stolen bank cards

A Bulawayo man accused of stealing 21 bank cards from unsuspecting members of the public while pretending to assist them withdraw money has appeared in court facing fraud charges.

Caleb Murahwa, of Mpopoma suburb, appeared before Bulawayo provincial magistrate Themba Chimiso. He was not asked to plead and only confirmed his personal details and the charges being levelled against him.

Murahwa was remanded in custody to April 8 for the commencement of trial.

Prosecutor Rumbidzai Gwishiri told the court that on March 31, Murahwa allegedly targeted Martha Maphosa (53) at a bank in Bulawayo's city centre.

She said Maphosa had attempted to withdraw money from an automated teller machine (ATM) but encountered difficulties.

"Murahwa approached Ms Maphosa and offered to assist her. She handed him her bank card and he pretended to help her. However, he allegedly swapped the card before fleeing from the bank," said Gwishiri.

"The complainant quickly realised that her card had been stolen and alerted bank security personnel. Security officers, together with members of the public, pursued and apprehended him before taking him to a police station, leading to his arrest."

The court heard that Murahwa was searched and allegedly found in possession of 21 debit cards from different banks belonging to various individuals.

"Ms Maphosa later discovered that the accused had given her a different bank card belonging to a man identified as Prince Mapupu," said Gwishiri.

In a related case, James Malolo of Emthunzini suburb was recently found in possession of 78 active Zimswitch cards belonging to various companies and individuals. He allegedly used the cards to make fraudulent purchases at supermarkets and wholesale outlets.

Card cloning has reportedly become increasingly common in Zimbabwe, with criminal syndicates taking advantage of the growing use of plastic money by businesses and the public.

Fraudsters often need only a brief distraction to pass victims' ATM cards through skimming devices to create duplicates.

Malolo's alleged activities came to light after a Harare woman was alerted by a vigilant till operator at a local wholesaler that someone had used her banking details to make a US$12 000 transaction.

After verifying the transaction and reviewing closed-circuit television footage, the wholesaler reportedly identified Malolo as the suspect and noted that he was a regular customer.