Two Harare-based sales agents have appeared in court facing serious charges of fraud and money laundering after allegedly defrauding their employer of nearly US$24,000 through a sophisticated fake claims scheme.
Wayne Juawo and Jacob Mutambirwa, both aged 22 were brought before Magistrate Ruth Moyo.
They were each granted bail of US$200 and are expected to return to court on 28 August.
The complainant in the matter is Goldenclem Credit represented by its operations manager, Mr Terrence Taka.
According to the prosecution, between January and May this year the two accused created fraudulent claim forms using the identities of various unsuspecting civil servants.
These forms were submitted through the company’s internal system triggering the release of household products supposedly meant for legitimate clients.
To avoid detection, Juawo and Mutambirwa reportedly deleted the fake claim forms from the company’s records to prevent the Salary Services Bureau (SSB) from initiating deductions which could have exposed the scam.
The court heard that Juawo was arrested on 19 July and a search at his home led to the recovery of several items allegedly obtained fraudulently including a headboard, three television sets, a solar power system, a chainsaw and a printer.
Goldenclem Credit suffered a loss of US$16,273 due to his actions, though only US$4,000 worth of goods were recovered.
Mutambirwa was arrested the same day.
Police recovered two sofas from his home. The estimated loss attributed to him was US$7,717, with only US$1,500 worth of goods recovered.
In total, the company lost US$23,990 through the scheme, while just US$5,500 in goods have been recovered so far.
