Fake offer letters quartet arrested

FOUR men from Mhangura have been arrested for masquerading as Government officials, allocating land and issuing fake offer letters.

The quartet - Never Pedzerai (51), Guya Mushuku (41), Eliot Chiseva (41) and Tungamirai Tinosekwa (age not given) all from Mhangura - have since appeared before the magistrates’ courts in Chinhoyi. They are facing fraud charges. Chinhoyi regional magistrate Mrs Letwin Rwodzi granted them $500 bail each and ordered them to return to court on January 21.

Prosecuting, Mr Chipupuri Tinoziva told the court that the four were allegedly involved in duping people of their money by offering them land and issuing them fake offer letters.

He said the four alleged fraudsters misrepresented that they were sent by the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement to issue offer letters and allocate pieces of land.

They allegedly processed fake offer letters which they sold to unsuspecting land seekers.

Mr Tinoziva said police also recovered a number of fake offer letters intended to be distributed to “new” beneficiaries as well as minutes of the meetings held by the suspected fraudsters.

The prosecutor said the four were charging amounts varying between $80 to $210 depending on the size of land, while a number of people could have lost their money.