Tendai Rupapa Court Reporter
MINERS Federation of Zimbabwe president Trynos Nkomo and Harare businessman Tendai Mundawarara appeared in court yes­terday charged with swindling a Dubai jew­ellery company of US$280 000 in a botched gold deal.
Nkomo (46) and Beaver  Mining Company director Mundawarara (49) were not asked to plead to fraud charges when they were arraigned before Harare magistrate Mr Don­ald Ndirowei.
Mundawarara is facing another charge of illegally possessing four kilogrammes of gold under the Gold Trade Act.
He received the gold from Nkomo when he had no licence. On the fraud charge, Mundawarara is representing his company and also charged in his personal capacity.
It is alleged that Mundawarara, through his company, misrepresented to officials of the jewellery company that they were registered gold dealers and could supply gold to them within three days of payment.
He then engaged Nkomo and they received US$430 000 from Kaloti Jewellery Interna­tional, but they only delivered gold worth US$150 000.
Nkomo and Mundawarara were ordered to deposit US$1 000 apiece as bail, coupled with stringent conditions.
They were ordered to surrender their pass­ports and not to interfere with witnesses.
Mundawarara was ordered to report once every Friday at CID Minerals Unit, while Nkomo will be reporting at West Nicholson Police Station.
Prosecutor Miss Ellaine Mokora alleged that on October 14 last year, Mundawarara, through his company, misrepresented to Kaloti Jewellery International through Earth­clean Pvt Ltd, their local representative offi­cials that they were licenced gold dealers.
Mundawarara entered into an agreement with Kaloti Jewellery for the supply of eight and half kilogrammes of gold were to be exported to Dubai.
It is alleged that Mundawarara then engaged Nkomo and instructed him to open an account with NMB Bank where he is the chairman of the board of directors.
Mundawarara, the court heard, instructed Kaloti Jewellery to deposit US$430 000 into the account and the money was deposited on October 24.
It is the State’s case that Nkomo and Mundawarara drafted a fraudulent agree­ment between the Zimbabwe Miners Federa­tion and Kaloti Jewellery.
Nkomo, the State further alleged, withdrew the money on two occasions and Kaloti Jew­ellery only received three and half kilo­grammes of gold valued at US$150 000 and suffered a prejudice of US$280 000.