Two Harare residents have been accused of impersonating police officers in an attempt to extort money from a Chinese businessman. Primrose Tarumbiswa and Prosper Chimbunu appeared before a magistrate on charges of masquerading as law enforcement to defraud Xie Haiyan.
The court granted the pair $50,000 bail and they must return for their next hearing on June 28. The prosecution claims that last week, Tarumbiswa contacted Xie pretending she wanted to import goods from China. They met in her car downtown.
During their meeting, Chimbunu suddenly emerged, falsely identifying himself as a police officer. He accused Xie of dealing drugs and said he was under arrest. The pair then demanded a $20,000 payment but Xie only offered $3,000 and was released. Xie later reported the scam to authorities, resulting in Tarumbiswa and Chimbunu’s arrests.
