Four In Court After Defrauding Polish Investor of US$256,426

Four men from Mutare have appeared in court on charges of defrauding a Polish investor of US$256,426 in a failed investment deal.

Hillary Joseph Dzuda (20), Ashley Dzuda (27), Gabriel Tinashe Mapfunde (41), and Kudzai Garry Muricho (41), from Mugadza Chinzamba and Partners Legal Practitioners, were facing fraud charges when they appeared before Harare Magistrate Ms. Marehwanazvo Gofa.

They were remanded in custody until March 5 for a bail application.

The complainant in the case is Kwiakowski Marcin.

The court heard that, in February 2024, Joseph approached the complainant, who was attending a business meeting with other foreign investors. Joseph misrepresented himself as a well-established businessman seeking foreign investors for his projects. The complainant was convinced that Joseph was a genuine business partner.

Joseph allegedly claimed to be involved in gold mining, gold processing, and gold trading, and stated that he owned several gold mines in Penhalonga, Mutare. The complainant agreed to partner with him in the mining business, and the two decided to register a company together. On September 6, 2024, they established a company called Aurera Ventures Private Limited.

In October 2024, the complainant met Joseph, who was accompanied by Ashley. Joseph introduced Mapfunde as his business associate, stating that they were working together at the mines. The complainant then gave the accused persons US$256,426, which was intended for mining operations at Redwing Mine in Mutare. The accused assured the complainant that the company would generate US$1.8 million within three months.

However, after three months, the complainant received no returns. The accused gave excuses, claiming they had three kilograms of gold that had yet to be sold. Ashley provided the complainant with monthly reports showing that the company had a cash flow of US$256,426.

On January 31, 2025, the complainant asked Joseph to deposit the US$256,426 into his business account to secure funding from other investors. However, the accused persons claimed that Joseph had instead made a US$200,000 payment to Tripple D Mining Syndicate for the purchase of a mining claim being sold by the syndicate.

Joseph then allegedly colluded with Muricho to deceive the complainant into believing the US$200,000 had been paid to Tripple D Mining Syndicate. Muricho, a legal practitioner for the syndicate, wrote a letter and personally handed it to the complainant, falsely stating that the law firm was in possession of the US$200,000 on behalf of the syndicate. In reality, the law firm had no such money and had not received it.

The complainant later realized he had been defrauded and filed a police report. Investigations led to the arrest of the accused, revealing that Joseph had misled the complainant about the US$200,000 transaction, which had actually taken place in August 2024, not February 2025 as claimed. Further investigation revealed that Muricho had written the letter knowingly, falsely confirming the receipt of money.

A visit to Muricho’s law firm confirmed that the principal of the firm denied receiving any money from the syndicate and had not instructed Muricho to write the letter. The total amount defrauded was US$256,426, and nothing has been recovered.