Munyaradzi Mashiri- Court Correspondent
A senior immigration officer stationed at Nyamapanda Border Post appeared in court on charges of criminal abuse of duty after allegedly facilitating the unlawful entry of seven Chinese nationals into Zimbabwe.
Samson Mashura, 54, a Principal Immigration Officer with the Department of Immigration, appeared before Harare Regional Magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts.
Mashura is being charged with criminal abuse of duty as a public officer.
The State alleges that on July 31, at around 8 p.m., Mashura, in connivance with Patience Chamboko, the shift supervisor at the time, processed holiday visas for seven Chinese nationals who were not physically present at the border.
The Chinese nationals involved were identified as Lin Lou, Junhao Yu, Libo Jiang, Donghong Cao, Shu Liu, Ruizhu Fang, and Xiaojun Hung.
According to the prosecution, Mashura handed over the passports of the seven individuals to Chamboko and instructed her to process visas through the Online Border Management System.
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Chamboko complied, resulting in the issuance of visas to the nationals.
Investigations later revealed that none of the immigration officers on duty had seen the individuals physically present at Nyamapanda Border Post on the date in question.
Further discrepancies were uncovered when it was discovered that one of the individuals, Xiaojun Hung, had been processed through OBMS on July 31, despite records showing he was already in custody at Mutare Remand Prison by 2:09 p.m. that same day, having been arrested as a prohibited immigrant.
Another Chinese national, Libo Jiang, was found to be in detention at Harare Remand Prison on the same day the visas were allegedly issued.
The State also presented communication records between Mashura and Chamboko in which they discussed how to report the incident to their superiors.
In the messages, Chamboko accused Mashura of misleading her into processing the visas and insisted that she did not benefit from the act.
She also clearly outlined Mashura’s active role in facilitating the irregular clearance.
The prosecution argues that Mashura’s conduct was inconsistent with his duties as a public officer and was intended to show undue favor to the foreign nationals.
He was admitted to US$100 bail and will appear in court on October 14, 2025.
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