A KEY witness in a case in which a Harare couple is facing charges of defrauding former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono yesterday said the country’s top banker should be summoned to court to clarify some issues.
The couple, Clark Clever Makoni and Beverly Aisha Ndonda Makoni, face charges of defrauding Gono of ZWL$137 million.
Yesterday, the witness, George Mashonganyika, did not respond to some questions from the defence during cross-examination.
The ongoing trial, presided over by Harare magistrate Stanford Mambanje, has attracted considerable attention after another magistrate Sharon Rakafa dismissed similar charges due to procedural concerns.
Defence lawyer Admire Rubaya questioned Mashonganyika’s credibility as a witness to speak on behalf of Valley Lodge.
Rubaya submitted that the State’s handling of the case had been flawed from the outset, arguing that the inconsistencies cast doubt on the prosecution’s readiness.
During cross-examination, Mashonganyika admitted that Gono would need to come to court to provide key evidence for the case to advance.
On Wednesday, Mashonganyika said he was not present when the Makonis allegedly tendered a signed CR14 to ZB Bank said to have been used by the couple to dupe Galwex Investments, Gono’s company.
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Rubaya argued that Mashonganyika was not employed by the ZB Bank Mutare branch and was, therefore, not a credible witness as he allegedly did not see the couple presenting any fraudulent documents to the bank.
The trial is set to resume on October 30, 2024.
Allegations are that on October 30, 2009, Costick Investments (Pvt) Ltd sold all its shares in Lizack and Valley Lodge to Galwex Investments (Pvt) Ltd and sometime in 2017, Mashonganyika assigned Ark Properties, a company owned by Makoni and his wife to manage Valley Lodge (Pvt) Ltd as estate agents.
The State alleges that on October 30, 2009, Costick Investments (Pvt) Ltd sold all its shares in Lizack and Valley Lodge to Gono’s Galwex Investments (Pvt) Ltd.
In 2017, a company owned by the couple was assigned to manage Valley Lodge as estate agents.
They allegedly later changed its directorship.
