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Businesswoman turns to Zacc over Mau Mau-Homelink deal

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LOCAL businesswoman, Letticia Kudakwashe Manyepa, has sought the intervention of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) to investigate State-owned financial institution, Homelink, over a bond extended to former boxing promoter, Stalin Mau-Mau.

LOCAL businesswoman, Letticia Kudakwashe Manyepa, has sought the intervention of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) to investigate State-owned financial institution, Homelink, over a bond extended to former boxing promoter, Stalin Mau-Mau.

BY CHARLES LAITON

Manyepa is cited as the complainant in a fraud case, which is currently underway at the High Court in which she accuses Mau-Mau of defrauding her of ZW$42 million, which at the official bank rate at the time was equivalent to $763 081,39 in a botched property deal in 2003.

The trial is being handled by Justice Clement Phiri and has since been adjourned to February 15 this year for continuation.

In a letter dated January 24, 2017 addressed to Zacc, Manyepa alleges she suspects there were shoddy deals being carried out by Homelink officials, which needed to be unearthed.

Manyepa said sometime in 2003, she bought from Mau-Mau, house number 350 Valley Road, Greendale, through her company, Viventi Enterprises, but the property was never transferred into her name. She allegedly later discovered that Mau-Mau had used fraudulent identities to obtain a bond from Homelink.

“The property was never transferred to me by the seller (Mau-Mau). On pursuing the transfer, the seller used identities of Joseph and Caroline Shoniwa and obtained a bond from Homelink, which Homelink issued and registered over the property,” Manyepa said.

“There was no file with Homelink on this facility prior to 2011 for the said bond holders Joseph and Caroline Shoniwa.”

The businesswoman told Zacc investigations by relevant authorities had discovered there was no communication between Homelink and the bond holders regarding the facility or the loan repayment.

“The investigations carried out to find the Shoniwas, established that the seller had used their identities without their consent or approval, as they had once applied for a facility with Homelink. Homelink further paid out the proceeds to an agent unknown to the Shoniwas instead of the agent they had applied through,” she said.

“The Shoniwas were not aware that the property had been purchased and transferred into their name until contacted through investigations in 2016. The original seller, Stalin Mau-Mau, received payments from both me and Homelink, but still resides and occupies the property.”

Mau-Mau has since pleaded not guilty to the charge.