Vice President Mujuru’s daughter up for fraud

By Charles Laiton

Rumbidzai Mujuru, believed to be the daughter of Vice-President Joice Mujuru, on Thursday appeared in court charged with smuggling a vehicle and defrauding a Chinhoyi woman of $7 400 in a vehicle import scam. 

Harare magistrate Nomsa Sabarauta remanded her out of custody to today for trial. According to prosecutor Patience Chimusaru, Mujuru (33) is alleged to have sold an unregistered Mazda Familia sedan displaying fake registration numbers to Nyarai Charimba in October 2007.

It is also alleged the vehicle had been smuggled into the country and at the time of sale it was displaying registration numbers ABE1868 belonging to a Datsun Nissan pick-up truck.

Allegations against Mujuru are that during the month in question, and on the dates unknown to the State, she used unknown sources and obtained a registration book and a number plate which she displayed on the smuggled car. She then allegedly sold the vehicle to Charimba of Number 4462 Cold Stream Chinhoyi.

According to Charimba, she met Mujuru after being introduced to her by a friend who advised her that she was a car dealer. After consultations, Charimba allegedly made an initial payment of $7 200 in October 2007 but the vehicle was delivered in September 2008.

The State alleges that due to the delay in delivery, Charimba suspected something was amiss and she contacted police officers from Vehicle Theft Squad (VTS) and asked them to accompany her to collect it.

Mujuru is said to have told Charimba that she had cleared the vehicle with ZIMRA and promised to give her the relevant documents but efforts to get them proved fruitless. The matter was reported to police leading to Mujuru’s arrest. NewsDay

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