Bulawayo Councillor Faces Court Over Alleged Vending Bay Fraud
Ward One Councillor Josiah Mutangi and his alleged accomplice Janet Zhou appeared before Bulawayo Provincial Magistrate Richard Ramaboea on Tuesday, facing 14 counts of fraud.
The pair is accused of swindling 14 vendors out of US$200 each after allegedly promising to secure vending bays for them in the city.
According to court documents, the vendors paid the money expecting to receive designated vending spots.
However, the complainants later rejected the bays offered, claiming the locations were unsuitable.
When they demanded refunds and failed to recover their money, they reported the matter to the police, leading to the arrest of Mutangi and Zhou.
The accused, represented by Constance Mathaba of Makiye and Partners, pleaded not guilty.
Through their lawyer, they argued that the payments were made to an association, not to them personally, and insisted that vending bays had indeed been offered.
“The complainants were given vending bays but refused them because they didn’t like the location,” the defense stated.
Mutangi, who recently served a 30-day jail sentence for defying a court order to vacate a farmhouse in Umguza, remains under scrutiny as the fraud case unfolds.
-B-Metro
