US$9 550 cooperative swindlers granted bail

Michael Mashiri

Four Snake Park men, who are alleged to have stolen US$9 550.18 from Marwende Housing Cooperative, have been given ZWL$30 000 bail each and were ordered to come back to court on 17 January, 2023 for their ruling.

Chalmers Nyamatanga, Motion Mugari, Regis Samu and Muchecheteri Chawamana appeared before the Harare Magistrates’ Court accused of theft as defined in Section 113 (2) of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act Chapter 9:23.

Samson Mutengwa of Snake Park in Harare, who is member of Marwede Housing Cooperative, is the complainant in the matter.

The court was intimated that on 10 November, 2003, Marwede Housing Cooperative was registered with the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises.

The purpose of the cooperative was to purchase and develop land so that members would benefit and, as a result, it purchased a piece of land measuring 20.8 hectares intended to be subdivided for residential stands.

Sometime in 2011, Nyamatanga, Mugari, Samu and Muchecheteri were elected to be in the management committee of Marwede Housing cooperative. Nyamatanga was the chairman, Mugari was the secretary, Samu and Muchecheteri were committee members.

The committee was mandated to call for 12 general meetings per year, to deliberate on the cooperative’s issues, managing all payments and expenditures of the cooperative. They also did contracts of the cooperative.

Between 2011 and 2018, Nyamatanga, Mugari, Samu and Muchecheteri, who by that time were the management committee and the custodians of the cooperative funds, received a total amount of US$9 550.18 which was meant for cooperative business.

An audit was done and unearthed discrepancies showing that Nyamatanga, Mugari, Samu and Muchecheteri accounted incorrectly for a total amount of US$9 550.18 which they used for unknown expenses and the matter was reported to the police, leading to their arrest.

This saw the cooperative losing a total of $9 550.18 and nothing was recovered.