HARARE regional magistrate Stanford Mambanje yesterday granted bail to four Premier Service Medical Aid Society bosses (PSMAS) of $400 000 each.
Chief executive office Farai Muchena, group strategy and performance executive Victor Chaipa, company secretary Cosmas Mukwesha and performance manager Polite Mugwagwa are facing allegations of stealing US$702 386 from their employer.
They were ordered to surrender their passports as part of their bail conditions.
The the bail ruling of their fellow accused, Cecilia Alexander and Wellington Tutisa, who are directors, was postponed to Monday.
The court heard that sometime in 2020, the PSMAS board passed a resolution to venture into buying and selling of gold.
It was further resolved that staff members from its procurement department were to act as buyers and agents for buying the gold on behalf of PSMAS.
On February 18, 2021, PSMAS, acting on the board resolution, handed over these projects of gold buying, cannabis growing and micro finance business to the Premier Service Holding Company to enable them to focus on their core business of health insurance.
On July 13, 2021, Muchena sent a memo to the complainant’s principal officer requesting funding for the gold project.
- Opinion: Corruption a threat to viability of health systems
- Health talk: Zim health system grapples with corruption
- PSMI workers sing the blues
- $2,1bn deficit weighs down PSMI
Keep Reading
It is the State’s case that the funding amounted to US$237 794, with US$108 674 as pre-trading funding.
Muchena later advised PSMAS about the formation of a company styled Claydust solely for the buying and selling of gold to Fidelity Printers and Refiners.
In response, the complainant disposed of its ZB Bank shares totalling 659 643 and valued at US$38 000 to fund the gold project.
It is alleged that the accused persons, however, diverted from the initially agreed position of using the complainant’s procurement team in buying the gold on behalf of the society.
The court heard that instead, the accused persons engaged 18 private agencies unknown to the PSMAS for gold buying.
The audit uncovered that the accused persons received and converted all the money realised from the sale of gold to Fidelity Printers totalling US$702 386,80 to their own use.
