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Wife trader, spouse jailed 30 months

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A MBARE man who connived with his wife and “married” her off to a 56-year-old lovelorn Kuwadzana man for $4 000 has been sentenced to a 30-month jail term together with his wife who posed as his blood sister.

A MBARE man who connived with his wife and “married” her off to a 56-year-old lovelorn Kuwadzana man for $4 000 has been sentenced to a 30-month jail term together with his wife who posed as his blood sister.

BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE

The couple was convicted and sentenced on their own plea of guilty to fraud when they appeared before Harare magistrate Victoria Mashamba.

The convicts, Brian Nkathazo Mathe (30) and Stephanie Pullen (22), will, however, serve a 12-month effective jail term each after the magistrate suspended 12 months on condition of good behaviour and another six on condition of compensating Nyakanyaka Msipani of his $4 000.

The court heard that sometime in February this year, Mathe and Pullen connived to steal from Msipani and they opened a Facebook account, where Pullen posed as a loner searching for a marriage partner.

Msipani fell for the trap and later met Pullen, who introduced Mathe as her brother.

Msipani and Pullen agreed to marry, with Mathe standing in as her only surviving “brother”.

The court heard that Msipani proceeded to pay $3 000 in March through bank transfers to Mathe.

Mathe then presided over the lobola process and promised to escort the complainant’s “wife” Pullen to his residence after two weeks.

After almost two weeks of waiting, Msipani then received a call from Mathe advising him that his wife was in urgent need of medical assistance.

Msipani then gave Mathe his bank debit card and PIN number with instructions to use only $100, but, instead, the two went on to withdraw $589 and then became evasive.

The court heard Mathe and Pullen later met Msipani and indicated to him that they had used all the money to pay medical bills and requested for some groceries from him.

The three went to a shopping centre situated along Fife Avenue, where Mathe told Msipani that he would get some cash back.

The court heard Pullen then took Msipani’s other debit card and went into the shop, leaving Mathe and Msipani outside.

Pullen and Mathe then disappeared again with the debit bank card which had $440.

The two went on to squander all the money.

Msipani later came across Mathe in the Harare central business district, and caused his arrest.