A HARARE woman allegedly falsified documents of her late boyfriend to claim his estate after staying with the deceased for a few days.
The suspect, Portia Rudo Bvekerwa, claimed to the Master of the High Court that she is the surviving spouse of the late Stanely Phute in bid to claim his estate despite her staying with the deceased for less than a week.
The deceased’s daughter Nyasha Lynnette is the applicant in the matter, and she cited Bvekerwa and Tatenda Ndlovu, the executor of the estate, as respondents.
In her application before the court, Nyasha said her mother was married to Phute since 1992.
Her parents then divorced on July 11 this year under case number HCHF955/24.
However, her father died on July 19, a week after the divorce.
Nyasha said after her father died, Bvekerwa went to the Master of High Court to register the estate of her late father.
Nyasha met Bvekerwa at the Master’s offices, where she openly declared that she was married to her father since April 29, 2023.
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According to Nyasha’s submissions, Bvekerwa went further to have the marriage confirmed on September 11, 2024 and ever since, she has allegedly been going around purporting to be her late father’s widow.
Nyasha told the court that Bvekerwa has also initiated claims with the National Social Security Authority for her late father’s pension.
Nyasha submitted the fake death certificate presented before the magistrate by the suspect in connivance with the executor of the estate as well as the original death certificate issued by the Registrar of Deaths.
She said both death certificates are materially different on placement of names and other areas as highlighted in the letter submitted.
Nyasha said she is the daughter of the deceased and the beneficiary of the estate.
She argued that her late father was never married to Bvekerwa.
She said Bvekerwa is claiming to have been married during the subsistence of the marriage between his mother and her late father.
Nyasha is seeking a declaratory order nullifying the confirmation of customary law marriage between her late father and Bvekerwa.
She also wants the court to order that the purported marriage be declared null and void.
Nyasha submitted that she will suffer irreparable harm if the court failed to declare the order requested.
The application is pending.
