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Fake robbery allegedly masks US$22,000 gold deal loss
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A gold-buying deal allegedly left a man facing a loss of nearly US$22,000 after two Goromonzi men reportedly fabricated a robbery story to conceal the disappearance of money and gold.
Tawanda Mutando, 38, and Knowledge Mutando, 32, appeared before Harare magistrate Ruth Moyo facing fraud charges. They were granted bail.
The complainant, Terence Mashiri, is employed by Blue Stream Finance.
The State alleges that in September last year, Tawanda approached Mashiri with a proposal to partner in a gold-buying business.
To convince Mashiri that the venture was legitimate, Tawanda allegedly produced a permit purportedly issued by Fidelity Gold Refinery (Pvt) Ltd authorising him to operate as a legal gold buyer.
The permit allegedly identified Knowledge as an agent.
According to the State, the arrangement was that Knowledge would purchase gold while Tawanda would be responsible for handling the money and accounting for the gold bought.
Trusting the two men, Mashiri allegedly handed Tawanda US$31,700 to invest in the business.
The arrangement reportedly ran into difficulties when Mashiri later requested the return of some of his money.
In January, he allegedly asked for US$15,000 for personal use.
Two days later, Tawanda allegedly returned only US$5,500, leaving a balance of US$26,200.
The court heard that Knowledge subsequently told Mashiri that he had purchased 136.82 grammes of gold for US$14,571.33.
He allegedly said he was transporting the gold to Harare for safekeeping.
However, upon arriving in Harare, Knowledge allegedly claimed that he had been robbed and that both the gold and the money had been stolen.
The alleged robbery claim later came under scrutiny.
A month later, Mashiri allegedly discovered that Knowledge had not been robbed and had instead allegedly used the money to purchase a residential stand and construct a house in Goromonzi.
The State alleges that Mashiri confronted the two men at their residence.
During the confrontation, the court heard, the two allegedly admitted that the robbery story had been fabricated.
They allegedly agreed to reimburse Mashiri and offered to surrender the residential stand as part-payment of the money owed.
The State alleges that the scheme resulted in Mashiri suffering actual prejudice of US$21,891.
The two men are now facing fraud charges in connection with the alleged deception.
Tawanda Mutando, 38, and Knowledge Mutando, 32, appeared before Harare magistrate Ruth Moyo facing fraud charges. They were granted bail.
The complainant, Terence Mashiri, is employed by Blue Stream Finance.
The State alleges that in September last year, Tawanda approached Mashiri with a proposal to partner in a gold-buying business.
To convince Mashiri that the venture was legitimate, Tawanda allegedly produced a permit purportedly issued by Fidelity Gold Refinery (Pvt) Ltd authorising him to operate as a legal gold buyer.
The permit allegedly identified Knowledge as an agent.
According to the State, the arrangement was that Knowledge would purchase gold while Tawanda would be responsible for handling the money and accounting for the gold bought.
Trusting the two men, Mashiri allegedly handed Tawanda US$31,700 to invest in the business.
The arrangement reportedly ran into difficulties when Mashiri later requested the return of some of his money.
In January, he allegedly asked for US$15,000 for personal use.
Two days later, Tawanda allegedly returned only US$5,500, leaving a balance of US$26,200.
The court heard that Knowledge subsequently told Mashiri that he had purchased 136.82 grammes of gold for US$14,571.33.
He allegedly said he was transporting the gold to Harare for safekeeping.
However, upon arriving in Harare, Knowledge allegedly claimed that he had been robbed and that both the gold and the money had been stolen.
The alleged robbery claim later came under scrutiny.
A month later, Mashiri allegedly discovered that Knowledge had not been robbed and had instead allegedly used the money to purchase a residential stand and construct a house in Goromonzi.
The State alleges that Mashiri confronted the two men at their residence.
During the confrontation, the court heard, the two allegedly admitted that the robbery story had been fabricated.
They allegedly agreed to reimburse Mashiri and offered to surrender the residential stand as part-payment of the money owed.
The State alleges that the scheme resulted in Mashiri suffering actual prejudice of US$21,891.
The two men are now facing fraud charges in connection with the alleged deception.
Source - The Herald
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