Vingirai charged with 11 counts of theft, out on $2000 bail

FORMER Intermarket Holdings Limited chief executive Nicholas Vingirai was yesterday charged with 11 counts of theft and two of externalisation involving US$300 000, R1 500 000 and Z$5 216 727.

Vingirai, who was arrested on arrival at the Harare International Airport on Monday after spending seven years on the police wanted list, is accused of using depositors' funds for his own benefit or for the benefit of companies in which he had interests.

Vingirai was not asked to plead to the charges when he appeared before Mr Donald Ndirowei who granted him US$2 000 bail coupled with stringent conditions.

The State did not oppose bail.

Vingirai was ordered to surrender assets with a value of US$60 000 as surety and to surrender his travelling documents.

He was also barred from visiting or interfering with workers, directors and shareholders of Intermarket Holdings and to report once every week at the Criminal Investigations Department (Frauds).

Prosecutor Ms Mollyn Mutamangira-Mavhondo yesterday said Vingirai was responsible for investing funds into the financial institution's subsidiaries that had their own separate management.

He allegedly connived with one of the signatories, Itayi Tandi and withdrew substantial amounts of Zimbabwean dollars from the subsidiaries' accounts and bought foreign currency, which they later converted to their personal use.

On August 28 2003, Vingirai allegedly issued a cheque valued at Z$570 000 000 drawn from the Intermarket Private Bank towards First Bank Corporation Ltd for the purchase of US$100 000.

The funds were later exported to Citibank London via Intermarket Banking Corporation Zambia without the authority of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

It is further alleged that on September 6 the same year, Vingirai issued a cheque valued at Z$630 000 000 drawn from the Private Bank account to Remo Stockbrokers.

The funds were reportedly channelled through Coppleridge to Century bank where US$200 000 was purchased and later transferred to Intermarket discount house in Zambia.

It is alleged US$100 000 was later credited into Vingirai's personal account while the remainder was transferred into his account in the United Kingdom without authority from the central bank.

The State also says on September 9, Vingirai issued a cheque worth Z$20 million to Micro-warehouse as a commission to Jivan who had facilitated the sell of foreign currency from First Bank in August.

On November 19, Vingirai again issued a cheque worth Z$1 930 934 to Zimra Commissioner-General for the purchase of vehicles imported by Investment Cars, which had nothing to do with Intermarket Holdings.

He gave one J Rose a cheque valued at Z$6 000 000 and this had nothing to do with the company. He further purchased a personal vehicle worth Z$130 000 000 using the company's funds, says the State.

The court further heard that on December 17, Vingirai paid Z$8 490 270 to Zimra as duty for the imported vehicles.

He also paid for a house in Greystone Park on behalf of Frank Buyanga, the court heard.

In August the same year, Vingirai allegedly exported US$300 000 to Citibank through Intermarket Discount House in Zambia without the authority of the RBZ.

The following month, he exported R1 500 000 to Andrew Weir and Company's Royal Bank of Scotland account.

Vingirai fled the country in early 2004 in the wake of a sector-wide banking crisis that claimed his Intermarket Banking Corporation, Intermarket Discount House and Intermarket Building Society.

He was the owner of Transnational Corporation, an investment vehicle through which he owned IHL, whose building society was among the top three mortgage lenders in the country.

Vingirai was specified under Zimbabwe's anti-corruption laws in 2005, along with more than a dozen other business executives and bankers.

But the specification was lifted in 2009 after the government announced an amnesty.

Despite the despecification, Vingirai's arrest warrant for money laundering was not cancelled.