BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE
A-29-YEAR-OLD suspected fraudster yesterday appeared before a Harare magistrate after he allegedly withdrew $3 million from various depositors’ bank accounts using cloned cards.
Tinotenda Chinyemba was remanded in custody to today by magistrate Dennis Mangosi.
The State alleges that on May 15 this year, Chinyemba, in the company of one Aurthur Moyo, who is at large, cloned a POSB debit card.
On May 28, the pair allegedly went to Zengeza 2 in Chitungwiza and purchased beer worth $160 000 and made 10 additional transactions of $10 000, bringing the total to $260 000.
On June 11 this year, it is alleged that police detectives received information that the accused person used a cloned card to transact for $30 000 at an Agribank point-of-sale machine registered in the name of Tafara Matupire, and with the intention to obtain United States dollars.
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At around midday, detectives spotted Chinyemba and Moyo alighting from a motor vehicle and the accused fled into a nearby bush.
Chinyemba was then arrested and taken to Zengeza Police Station for interrogation, while police searched the motor vehicle and recovered a defaced POSB bank card, which he attempted to shred into pieces during the arrest. He was also found with an Itel phone which he broke during the arrest.
The total value of the money stolen is $3 009 200 and only $12 870 was recovered.
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