Helen Murenha
(40) was released on US$300 bail and ordered to surrender her passport to the
court by Harare regional magistrate, Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa.
She was
remanded out of custody on bail to December 16 pending finalisation of
investigations.
The alleged
fraud was uncovered during a routine audit led by Dairibord’s Senior Internal
Auditor, Tawanda Chinembiri.
The State
revealed that the irregularities first came to light on November 5, when
Dairibord accountant Evermore Chanetsa conducted a reconciliation of Murenha’s
accounts and flagged a suspicious transaction.
This prompted
Mr Chinembiri to conduct a surprise cash count at Murenha’s office later that
day. During the cash count, US$18 000 was found in Murenha’s possession, but a
shortfall of US$54 612 was identified.
When
questioned, Murenha admitted to loaning funds to four Dairibord clients without
authority. She disclosed the amounts loaned, leading to the recovery of US$20
000 from Kavhura Investments, US$10 166 from Sigaka Gaza Cera Investments, and
US$5 000 from Definitive Investments, totalling US$35 166.
Further
investigations on November 6 revealed an additional theft of US$125 000.
Murenha allegedly diverted these funds, intended for Victor Farm Private
Limited, by falsifying records to make it appear as if the company had
collected the money.
The total
amount allegedly embezzled by Murenha stands at US$179 612, with only a small
portion recovered so far. Herald
0 comments:
Post a Comment