Suspected estate defrauder granted bai

Martin Tswarai Mutenda, chief executive of COMMERCE Veritas (Pvt) Ltd, has been granted bail after being detained for allegedly robbing the estate of late Cabinet Minister Joel Biggie Matiza. Harare magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa granted Mutenda (55) US$500 bail and postponed the case to June 14 this year.

Mutenda first appeared in court on May 2 this year, after Matiza's 26-year-old son, Batsirai, sued him for failing to honour a US$2 million agreement he made with Matiza's late wife Lillian in 2023. He allegedly falsified the late Lillian's designation as a director of a building company that also includes Jerome Leroy and Taurai Negonde. He is also said to have nominated himself as the company's secretary. The court heard that Lillian then delivered road equipment, including a pneumatic roller, paver, and office furniture, which she obtained from her company, Studio Arts (Pvt) Limited, with the expectation that she would be paid US$2 million at the completion of the project.

According to the State, Batsirai approached Mutenda in December last year, after his mother died, and asked him to put the money he owed her into the Biggie Joel Trust, of which he and other relatives are beneficiaries. Mutenda apparently refused, and Batsirai reported the incident to the police. He was subsequently arrested.