EcoCash fraudster jailed for stealing US$11 476

A Harare woman has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to fraud and theft involving more than US$11,000 through a scheme in which she allegedly used edited EcoCash transaction messages and stole EcoCash agent SIM cards to withdraw cash.

Nyasha Charumbira (29), of Tynwald South, appeared before Rusape provincial magistrate Tendai Mahwe facing charges of fraud and theft committed between February and December 2025.

The court heard that Charumbira defrauded TelOne Rusape of US$800 using a manipulated EcoCash cash-out message before stealing an EcoCash agent line from the parastatal and withdrawing a further US$501.

She later allegedly employed the same method at an EcoCash outlet, stealing another agent line and withdrawing US$10,175.

Charumbira was arrested in April 2026 in Ngundu, Masvingo, while allegedly attempting to commit a similar offence.

She pleaded guilty to all charges.

Magistrate Mahwe sentenced her to 24 months' imprisonment.

Six months of the sentence were suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour.

A further six months were suspended on condition that she restitutes TelOne US$1,301, while another eight months were suspended on condition that she repays US$10,175 to EcoCash agent Ruvarashe Jemina Munangu.

The court ordered that restitution be made immediately.

As Charumbira was unable to pay, she was immediately committed to prison.

Prosecutor Faith Mutukwa told the court that the first offence occurred on February 24, 2025, when Charumbira visited TelOne's Rusape office and conducted several small EcoCash transactions.

During the transactions, the billing and receiving clerk, Idaivamwe Mawondo, handed Charumbira the transaction phone to verify that the deposits had been successful.

The court heard that Charumbira used the opportunity to obtain the EcoCash agent line number by sending herself a "Please Call Me" message before leaving the premises.

She later returned claiming she wished to cash out funds allegedly sent by her mother.

According to the prosecution, Charumbira edited an EcoCash transaction notification to falsely indicate that US$800 had been transferred into the agent account.

Believing the notification to be genuine, Mawondo handed over the cash.

The fraud was only discovered days later after the transaction history was obtained from Econet, revealing that no legitimate transfer had taken place.

The court further heard that Charumbira subsequently stole the EcoCash agent SIM card from the TelOne transaction phone while pretending to verify another transaction.

She allegedly transferred US$492 from the agent account into an unsuspecting vendor's EcoCash wallet before the vendor withdrew the cash and handed it to her.

The total loss in that incident amounted to US$501.

In the third incident, prosecutors said Charumbira visited an EcoCash shop in Rusape on December 8, 2025, where she allegedly requested the transaction phone before secretly removing the agent SIM card.

Using the stolen line, she allegedly withdrew US$5,000 and US$2,000 through separate EcoCash accounts before transferring a further US$3,000 through another vendor's mobile wallet.

She also transferred US$400 into her InnBucks account before returning the phone and leaving the premises.

The theft came to light the following day after the EcoCash agent discovered that the transaction phone was no longer functioning and obtained transaction records from Econet.

Police investigations later linked the transactions to Charumbira, who was eventually arrested several months later in Masvingo while allegedly attempting to commit a similar offence.

The court heard that none of the stolen money was recovered.