Senior Court Reporter
A regional magistrate yesterday said he was not “comfortable” to rule on former Chitungwiza Town Clerk Godfrey Tanyanyiwa’s application for discharge until he watches a video which one of the witnesses claimed to have recorded. Tanyanyiwa is facing various counts of criminal abuse of office

and another of corruptly concealing from a principal personal interest involving US$470 000.
Presiding magistrate Mr Hosea Mujaya deferred the ruling to September 18 this year to allow him study the video in question.
He said he had only seen the transcript of the video, which the witness claimed to have recorded a transaction he carried out with Tanyanyiwa.
On the first fraud case Tanyanyiwa, well knowing that he had no money to buy a house, allegedly hatched a plan to defraud Chitungwiza municipality and took US$165 000 from council to buy a house in Chisipite.
On charges of corruptly concealing a personal interest in a transaction from a principal, the State says, during the period extending from September to December last year Tanyanyiwa allegedly offered the Chisipite house through his estate agent for rental to Chitungwiza municipality director of urban planning Mr Conrad Muchesa.
It is alleged Tanyanyiwa, with the intention to deceive, did not disclose his personal interest in the house to his principal and council ended up paying him US$1 300 per month for five months as rental for his property. As a result, council suffered a prejudice of US$6 500.
He is also accused of criminal abuse of duty after he allegedly corruptly acquired three commercial stands using names of three different shelf companies.
Tanyanyiwa allegedly prejudiced his employer of US$170 000 when he diverted funds meant for the purchase of three Toyota Fortuners for other senior officials to buy his Toyota Land Cruiser V8.