Budiriro Man jailed for Posing as Detective, Extor...

Budiriro Man jailed for Posing as Detective, Extorting Grieving Family

Munyaradzi Mashiri- Court Correspondent

A man who falsely claimed to be a police detective and told a complainant that he was the investigating officer in a case involving their relative's death—demanding money to facilitate investigations—has been sentenced to 54 months in prison.

Shepard Mangoma, 47, of Budiriro 4, appeared before Magistrate Tapiwa Banda facing charges of impersonation and extortion.

He was sentenced to 24 months for impersonation, which were wholly suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offense.
For the charge of extortion, he was sentenced to 60 months in prison, with 6 months suspended for good behavior.

The State, represented by Sithembiso Moyo, proved that on October 16, the complainant lost his uncle, Darlington Tatenda Mapiki, who died under mysterious circumstances in their neighborhood near Rugare Police Station.

The complainant was dissatisfied with how the post-mortem was handled at Harare Group of Hospitals, which concluded the deceased had committed suicide—a finding the family strongly believed was inaccurate and suspected foul play.

Mangoma learned about the family's plight and pretended to be a police detective.
He contacted the complainant, introducing himself as a detective stationed at CID Homicide in Harare and claimed to be the assigned investigating officer in the murder case, which he said had been referred from Rugare Police Post to CID Homicide.

He arranged to meet the complainant for an interview and to request assistance.
To gain their trust, Mangoma met the family at Greenwood Park, located at the corner of 7th Street and Chinamano Avenue, near Police General Headquarters.

There, he criticised the initial investigation done at Rugare Police Post and implicated officers and a pathologist in an alleged post-mortem scam.

Mangoma claimed the pathologist had been bribed with US$700 to falsify the post-mortem report and declare the death a suicide, when in fact, he claimed, the deceased had been murdered by five individuals for ritual purposes.

He told the family that two of the suspects had already been remanded in custody, and that three others, including a traditional healer in Gwanda who allegedly received human body parts, were yet to be arrested.

During the meeting, Mangoma demanded US$500 as a "transport allowance" to travel to Gwanda to arrest one of the accused. He warned that failure to provide the money would result in the remaining suspects not being arrested.

The complainant, Tichaona Mapira, agreed to meet Mangoma again on December 18, 2024, to hand over the money.

However, the complainant reported the matter to the CID Anti-Corruption Unit, which set up a trap using US$200 in marked notes: one US$100 note, one US$50 note (serial number PB26076711C), a US$20 note (serial number NJ30181047A), another US$20 note (serial number PL676806691), and a US$10 note (serial number PD01073417B).

A team of detectives, along with the complainant and his relatives, went to Rainbow Towers Hotel, where they met Mangoma.

Mangoma was handed the US$200 trap money by the complainant and was subsequently arrested.
The marked money was recovered from the front right pocket of his black trousers.

Mangoma’s defense counsel pleaded for leniency, telling the court that a custodial sentence would cause extreme hardship to his family, as he was the sole breadwinner, with five minor children and an unemployed wife.
He also noted that Mangoma had no prior convictions and had lived a law-abiding life.

“The defense requests a non-custodial sentence, such as community service, to allow the accused to contribute to the community while still being punished,” he said.

However, the State argued that the accused took advantage of a grieving family, which aggravated the offense.

“The prosecution argues that a harsher penalty is warranted due to the seriousness of the offense and its impact on the community,” said the prosecutor.

In delivering the sentence, Magistrate Banda acknowledged that Mangoma was a family man, but emphasized the need for a deterrent punishment.

“The court has considered that you are a family man. However, there is a need for a deterrent sentence. The complainants are struggling to get closure from the death of their loved one, and you took advantage of that,” he said.