Fake CIO agents visit Muguti’s office

Michael Mashiri

A man visited the offices of Harare Provincial Affairs & Devolution Permanent Secretary Tafadzwa Muguti and pretended to be a Central Intelligence Organization operative, before calling an accomplice who also claimed to be from the same security agency.

On December 5, 2022, around 10:30 hours, Mark Jack, 36, of Dzivarasekwa 2 turned up at Muguti’s offices and was attended to by a staffer named Herbert Chifunde.

Upon Chifunde’s request for Jack to identify himself, Jack said he had come from the Zanu-PF National headquarters and that he was with the President's Department and a CIO operative.

Jack failed to validate his CIO affiliation.

Instead he produced an identification card written, "EYES OF THE PRESIDENT."

Jack then phoned an accomplice Munyaradzi Mupazviripo, 49, of Eastlea who claimed to be a CIO operative himself and falsely confirmed Jack as being one too.

The motive behind the visit has not been stated.

The two appeared before Mr Dennis Mangosi at the Magistrates' Court, standing accused of infringing Section 179 of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act, Chapter 9:23, impersonating a public official.

Mr Mangosi denied the two bail on the basis that they are facing a serious offence and advised them to apply at the High Court instead.

He remanded them to December 30, 2022.