GRAIN Marketing Board (GMB) Binga depot supervisor and a
clerk have been arrested together with the district’s social welfare officer
after they allegedly stole nearly four tonnes of drought relief maize from the
depot.
Zebron Hungwe the supervisor and the clerk, Gladys Mugande,
allegedly connived with Regret Mudungwe, the Binga District Social Welfare
officer to forge invoices which they used to divert 74 by 50kg bags of maize
from the depot to an unknown destination.
The three claimed that they had delivered the maize to
Sunrise Children’s Home at Binga Centre and Kabwe Children’s Home in Pashu
within the district before investigations showed that the maize was stolen.
It is alleged that the trio forged invoices purporting that
they had given 32 bags of maize to Sunrise Children’s Home and 46 bags to Kabwe
Children’s Home.
The two homes were entitled to monthly allocations of four
bags and seven bags respectively for their day to day feeding of vulnerable
children under the Government drought relief programme.
Social Welfare department is responsible for distributing
drought relief food comprising grain and rice among other things on behalf of
Government and all are mostly stocked at GMB depots.
Hungwe, Mugande and Mudungwe were not formally charged with
a count of fraud and theft of trust property each when they appeared before
Binga resident magistrate Mr Urgent Vundla.
The trio was released on $1 500 bail each and remanded to
next week Wednesday. They were ordered not to interfere with witnesses and to
report once every fortnight to police in Binga as part of their bail
conditions.
Prosecuting, Mr Quiet Mpofu said the trio committed the
crimes between July and last week when GMB regional security officer based in
Kwekwe Mr Bonface Mabhaudi discovered the anomaly.
“During the period extending from July to September and at
GMB Binga depot, the three accused persons connived and issued out dispatch
documents purporting to account for maize issued to Sunrise Children’s Home and
Kabwe Children’s Home,” said Mr Mpofu.
Mr Mabhaudi visited Sunrise Children’s Home for
investigations and established that no such delivery of maize had been made.
The home has a monthly allocation of four bags of maize
which its authorities confirmed receiving for the month of August as opposed to
32 bags as alleged through the forged invoices.
Kabwe Children’s Home has a monthly allocation of seven
bags of maize contrary to 46 indicated in the fraudulent records by the trio.
The maize was meant to feed children at the two children’s
homes under the drought relief programme targeting the vulnerable.
The offence came to light when GMB security discovered the
anomaly and effected investigations leading to arrest of Hungwe, Mugande and
Mudungwe last week.
The total value of the stolen maize has not been given
while investigations are underway amid suspicions the crime may have been going
on for a long time thereby defrauding Government and depriving needy people of
food. Chronicle
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