Four Mutare residents, HillaryJoseph Dzuda, Ashley Dzuda, Gabriel Tinashe Mapfunde, and Kudzai Garry Muricho, appeared in court facing fraud charges for allegedly defrauding a Polish investor, Kwiakowski Marcin, of US$256,426.
The court heard that in February 2024, Joseph misrepresented himself as a well-established businessman to Marcin, who was attending a business meeting with other foreign investors.
Joseph claimed to be involved in gold mining, processing, and trading, and stated that he owned several gold mines in Penhalonga, Mutare.
Marcin was deceived into believing Joseph was genuine and partnered with him to register a company, Aurera Ventures Private Limited, on September 6, 2024.
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Joseph introduced Mapfunde and Ashley as his business associates, and Marcin gave them US$256,426 in cash for mining operations at Redwing Mine in Mutare.
The accused persons promised that the company would generate US$1.8 million within three months, but after that period, nothing was realized.
They gave excuses, claiming they had 3 kilograms of gold that was yet to be disposed of.
Ashley sent Marcin monthly returns showing a cash flow of US$256,426, but it was later discovered that this was false.
On January 31, 2025, Marcin advised Joseph to deposit the US$256,426 into his business account, but instead, Joseph claimed to have made a deposit payment of US$200,000 to Tripple D Mining Syndicate for a mining claim.
However, investigations revealed that this transaction was made in August 2024, not February 2025, and that Muricho, a legal practitioner, had written a false letter confirming receipt of the money.
The total prejudice is US$256,426, and nothing has been recovered. The accused were remanded in custody until March 5 for a bail application.
