Former ZANU PF Central committee member, Munyaradzi Right
Banda and his friend, Leonard Chiteka,
were arrested for allegedly conning Chinese company of US$50 000 in a mining
licensing deal.
Banda and Chiketa appeared at the Harare magistrates court
yesterday charged with fraud.They were not asked to plead when they appeared
before magistrate Barbra Mateko, who remanded them to July 28 on $2 000 bail
each.
The State led by Mr Sebastian Mutizirwa alleges that
sometime in August 2019 World Wide Belt and Road Mining Development Corporation
Zimbabwe was looking for a mining site along Nyamukwarara River in Manicaland.
The court heard that Li Bowen, a Chinese national, told
Banda and Chiteka that the chairman of World Wide Belt and Road Mining
Development Corporation Zimbabwe was looking for a license to mine gold in
Manicaland.
It is alleged that Chiteka went to No.6 Phillips Avenue,
Avondale in Harare where he told him that he could facilitate acquisition of a
special mining license.
Chiteka also allegedly indicated to the firm’s chairman
that he was working along with Banda an officer in the Zimbabwe National army.
Further allegations are that Chiteka teamed up with Banda
and managed to convince the Chinese firm’s chairman that they could facilitate
the acquisition of the gold mining license in Manicaland.
They also allegedly asked for US$50 000 cash for the
facilitation of the mining license.
Prosecutor Mutizirwa alleges that Chiteka and Banda
requested World Wide Belt and Road Mining Development Corporation Zimbabwe’s
chairman to enter into a Memorandum of Agreement and Mandate Letter for the
processing of the license.
Acting upon the misrepresentation, the chairman of the said
company allegedly gave Banda and Chiteka US$50 000 cash for the services.
After receiving the money, Banda and Chiteka allegedly
became evasive, which prompted the chairman to lodge a complaint with the
police. Herald
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