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Senior Court Reporter

FOUR Harare City Council workers, Edgar Dzehonye, Tineyi Kureva, Samantha Bobosibunu Maserere and Wellington Tauya, were erroneously reported to have been issued with a warrant of arrest last week.

The quartet, who are facing charges of fraudulently allocating 150 residential stands in Kuwadzana are expected to appear in court on March 24, according to the Practice Direction 4 issued by Chief Justice Luke Malaba.

They are being charged with fraud or alternatively criminal abuse of office.

It has since been established that they were remanded to March 24 according to the Practice Direction 4 after Dzehonye, Kureva, Maserere and Tauya had been last remanded to January 26 this year.

Charges against the four city employees arose between 2018 and 2019, when they allegedly connived with other council officials including Matthew Marara, Tapiwa Gona, Believer Mupawaenda, Margaret Sarudzai George and Rudo Chigocha, who are already on remand, to defraud the council.

They allegedly identified open spaces in Kuwadzana 3, 4, 5 and 6.

Further allegations are that they connived with other employees in the survey department and drew layout plans and allocated them stand numbers.

The court heard that they created fictitious paying schemes before fraudulently connecting water and creating sundry accounts for the purpose of selling the stands to home seekers.

The State said this was not consistent with their duties.

It is said they sold a total of 150 stands in Kuwadzana without council approval.

Further allegations are that the stands were disposed of through an estate agency, which received the money and deposited it into Gona’s bank account, who in turn allegedly transferred it to his alleged accomplices’ accounts.

Council allegedly lost US$$1 141 779 in the process.