A UGANDAN couple has been given a 30-day ultimatum to explain how they acquired two upmarket residential properties worth a combined US$300 000 in Harare, Zimbabwe, or risk having them forfeited to the State.
Last week, the High Court in Zimbabwe warned Robert Kwesiga and his wife Sandie Hilda, that the two houses located in Mt Pleasant and Vainona low-density suburbs could be seized by the State if they failed to explain how they raised the money for the properties.
The couple lived in Zimbabwe between 2007 and 2013 when Kwesiga worked at the Danish Red Cross, before relocating to Uganda.
Zimbabwean authorities suspect that the couple might have engaged in illegal activities to raise the money as Kwesiga’s regular salary could not afford the two properties.
The matter was brought to the High Court by the Prosecutor-General through the Asset Forfeiture Unit.
"The absence of a paper trail reflecting the origin and movement of the money that was used to purchase both houses only further compounded the suspicions of the state," the authorities submitted.
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In a related matter, the Prosecutor-General has obtained an order for civil forfeiture to the State of US$16 386 and a white Honda Airwave vehicle from a local illegal forex trader.
Samuel Tererai Chiodze was arrested on September 24, 2021, during a police crackdown on illegal foreign currency dealers. The court determined that the motor vehicle was used in transporting the illicit cash.