A SUSPECTED bogus City of Harare employee appeared before Harare magistrate Appollonia Marutya yesterday facing fraud charges.
He defrauded a director of a local company of US$92 000.
The suspect James Bleya (47) was being represented by Idah Mateke Maromo when he appeared in court.
He was ordered to deposit US$250 bail and instructed to reside at his given residential address until the matter is finalised.
Bleya will return to court on January 17 for routine remand pending finalisation of investigations.
The complainant is Matthew Wheeler.
State prosecutor Rufaro Chonzi alleged that sometime in January 2024, Wheeler expressed interest to buy residential stands in a letter addressed to City of Harare’s Department of Housing and Community Services.
It is not clear how Bleya got wind of Wheeler's application. The court heard that he misrepresented to the complainant that he was employed by Harare City Council and could facilitate his request for land.
According to court documents, between June and October 2024, Wheeler paid Bleya a total of US$92 000 as the alleged purchase price for the residential stands.
The State further alleged that Bleya gave the complainant fake receipts after receiving the money.
Bleya allegedly then became evasive when asked to provide further documentation proving that he was the legitimate owner of the alleged residential stands.
The complainant went to City of Harare offices to investigate and his file could not be located.
He was told that Bleya was not a council employee. He filed a police report, resulting in the arrest of the suspect.