The High Court has dismissed an attempt by two Zanu PF-linked convicted fraudsters, Moses Mpofu and Mike Chimombe, to challenge the lengthy prison terms they received for orchestrating a multi-million-dollar scam.
The fraud siphoned public funds from a national poverty alleviation programme.
Justice Pisirayi Kwenda refused leave to appeal to Mpofu and Chimombe, who were convicted in December 2025 of defrauding the government of more than US$7,3 million under the Presidential Goat Pass-On Scheme.
He found their intended appeals “lacked substance,” describing some of their legal arguments as “frivolous,” “vexatious,” and reflective of “dishonourable conduct.”
The two were found to have acted as co-perpetrators in a scheme that submitted a bid under a fictitious company, Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming, to supply over 632 000 goats.
They allegedly propped up the bid with forged tax and social security certificates and hijacked the identity of a legitimate but non-compliant company, Blackdeck (Pvt) Ltd.
After receiving ZWL$1,6 billion (about US$7,7 million at the time) from the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development, they delivered only 4 208 goats, valued at roughly US$331 445.
Most of the money was quickly dispersed, including a transfer of ZWL$200 million to Millytake Enterprises, a company controlled by Chimombe, before being illegally traded on the foreign-currency black market.
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Kwenda detailed how the deception took root within
government systems.
“The Ministry officials dealt with Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming and accepted its bid as valid after being misled into believing that Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming was lawfully the other name of Blackdeck (Pvt) Ltd,” he ruled, adding that the false impression created “so much confusion” that officials drafted a contract with the non-existent entity.
The judge was critical of Mpofu’s grounds of appeal, remarking that a lawyer who insists a company exists while knowing the proper legal formalities were never completed does so “only to cause annoyance to the court.”
Chimombe’s claim that he was merely a lobbyist was also dismissed.
The court cited a web of circumstantial evidence, including testimony from former Agriculture secretary John Basera, who said Chimombe “assumed a leading role during the deliberations and appeared to be the ultimate decision
maker.”
Kwenda indicated that “the totality of the circumstances…cannot be explained by any other inference than that he was a co-perpetrator.”
The judge upheld both men’s sentences, noting that the offence contained multiple “aggravating circumstances” under sentencing guidelines—including the high value involved, the abuse of public funds, and the lack of recovery.
Mpofu received an effective 19-year sentence, with part suspended on condition of repaying more than US$2 million.
Chimombe received an effective 14-year sentence, with a portion suspended on condition of repaying over US$964 000. Restitution must be paid by February 28, 2026.
