Magadza of
Greenside, Mutare was discharged by Mutare Magistrate Perseverance Makala at
the end of the State case.
She was
acquitted after her lawyer, Memory Mandingwa of Mhungu and Associates produced
emails and WhatsApp chats between Magadza and her direct supervisor, which
proved that she had accounted for the money and her books were in order.
Magistrate
Makala said the state failed to prove a prima facie case as there seemed to be
an understanding between the accused and her direct supervisor, which was shown
in the emails and WhatsApp chat messages.
She added that in terms of Section 198 of the
Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act [Chapter 9:07] where at the end of the
state case the court considers that there is no evidence that the accused
committed the offence, it has no discretion but to acquit the accused.
Magadza was an
independent insurance agent responsible for selling insurance products and
facilitating vehicle insurance and the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration
(ZINARA) vehicle license renewals on behalf of Econet Insurance.
Allegations
were that between June 1, 2024 and April 30, 2025, Magadza not only failed to
remit proceeds of Econet Insurance motor vehicle insurance policies sold to
clients but also converted the funds for her personal use.
Gift Zumbika
who is employed by Econet Zimbabwe in the Regional Security and Investigations
Department and was a witness in the case produced documents suggesting that
Magadza had failed to remit the money to the organisation.
Magadza,
however produced emails and WhatsApp chats between her and direct supervisor
that accounted for the money.
Zumbika said he
was not privy to the detailed emails produced on court. Masvingo Mirror
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