300 duped in Harare West stand scam

A HARARE couple is at the centre of a housing scandal that has seen over 300 prospective homeowners allegedly defrauded of more than US$42 000 in a bogus stand scheme.

Hazel Tariro Tanyanyia appeared before magistrate Ruth Moyo facing a fraud charge on Friday last week.

She was granted US$300 bail. Her husband, Tawanda Zeze, is still on the run.

The two are being accused of falsely claiming to offer donor-funded residential stands in Harare West under a project meant to benefit low-income earners.

They allegedly assured beneficiaries that they will be allocated houses upon completion of construction.

To lend credence to the alleged scam, the suspects established a trust named More Than Conquerors Trust (MTCT) and enlisted the help of Emily Jiri, Gladys Jiri and Natasha Mutambirwa, who are already on remand, to market the trust to the public.

Targeting church members in high-density suburbs, they allegedly lured individuals to the scheme claiming that MTCT was running a housing project that required an upfront payment of US$5 250, which is 15% of the supposed US$35 000 price of a house.

Many people reportedly joined the trust and paid monthly subscriptions.

Emily and Gladys Jiri allegedly handled payments and completed shelter forms, while Tanyanyia, Zeze and Mutambirwa allegedly collected the money for sharing among themselves.

In 2022, the complainants were taken on a site visit to Nyabira, where they were shown land being developed by Leengate (Pvt) Ltd.

They were also shown tarred roads, sample six-roomed houses and boreholes.

A similar visit was later conducted to Mt Hampden, where another undeveloped piece of land was presented as part of the project.

The accused allegedly held several meetings with beneficiaries promising them that the houses will be handed over in June 2023.

After the August 2023 elections, Zeze reportedly told the complainants that the houses were complete but were awaiting handover by donor representatives.

When follow-ups were made, Zeze is said to have continued making promises, including claims that he was finalising the installation of fitted kitchens and wardrobes before allocation.

In March this year, the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) executed a warrant of search and seizure at MTCT’s Century Mall offices and recovered shelter forms and receipts for more than 300 individuals.

Zacc later received information that the accused had relocated to Merchant House and were still operating. On May 8, Zacc officers arrested Emily, Gladys and Mutambirwa at the new offices.

They were found in possession of more shelter forms and receipt books.

Tanyanyia and Zeze reportedly fled upon realising they were being pursued.

Investigations later revealed that MTCT had not been allocated land by the City of Harare, Zvimba Rural District Council or the Local Government ministry. NewsDay