Ke appeared
before regional magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa, facing charges of money
laundering and contravening the Exchange Control Act by making payments without
the approval of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ).
He was granted
US$1 000 bail and ordered to surrender his passport as part of his bail
conditions.
Prosecutor Mr
Rufaro Chonzi told the court that on November 29, detectives from the CID Asset
Forfeiture Unit (Northern Region), led by Detective Assistant Inspector
Kachirika Peter, were conducting investigations under “Operation Pressure
Valve”.
The operation
focused on inspecting fuel and LPG retail sites, cracking down on the illegal
Hawala system, verifying compliance with licensing processes, and disrupting
money laundering and courier syndicates.
During the
operation, detectives received intelligence that Ke was allegedly running a
Hawala system at his premises located at Number 11 Maarsdop Avenue, Alexandra
Park, Harare.
According to
the prosecution, Ke accepted cash deposits from various clients and illegally
smuggled the money to China or used his networks abroad to pay for goods,
by-passing official banking channels and the RBZ’s authorisation processes.
A search
conducted at Ke’s premises uncovered receipts, registers, and bills of entry,
which investigators allege point to his involvement in Hawala activities.
Additionally,
cash totaling US$192 575 was recovered and is being held as evidence by the CID
Asset Forfeiture Unit.
The prosecution
alleges that Ke could not account for the source of the seized cash, raising
further suspicions of money laundering.
Instead of
routing payments through the RBZ Exchange Control Department, Xiao is accused
of directly paying foreign suppliers, thereby violating the country’s exchange
control laws. Herald
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