Harare – A South Africa-based Zimbabwean woman, Grace Makozho (31), has been arrested and brought before the Harare Magistrates’ Court to face charges of fraud and money laundering involving a staggering US$322,000 and 650,000 rand, pilfered from her employer, Access Forex.
Harare magistrate Donald Ndirowei has remanded Makozho in custody until today, where her bail application will be considered. In addition to the fraud and money laundering charges, Makozho faces a further charge of supplying false information to the police, compounding her legal woes.
Makozho, who was employed as a clerk at Access Forex from July 2022, allegedly masterminded a sophisticated scheme to defraud the company, exploiting her position and access to the company’s remittance system. The alleged plan was hatched sometime in April 2023, while she was working in South Africa.
According to the state’s case, Makozho allegedly created ghost remittance accounts within Access Forex’s system. Working in the same office as Liniet Maphosa, who was responsible for receiving funds from clients for transfer, Makozho allegedly exploited Maphosa’s credentials to execute her fraudulent scheme.
It is alleged that after creating these fictitious accounts bearing non-existent remitters, Makozho used Maphosa’s login details to access the transfer system. She then proceeded to transfer various amounts from Access Forex South Africa to 91 recipients in Zimbabwe, utilising the ghost accounts to mask the illicit transactions.
Among the recipients were her alleged accomplices, Dickson Gweshe and Shepherd Gweshe, who remain at large and are being sought by authorities. Makozho allegedly instructed these recipients to withdraw the money from Access Forex tellers across Zimbabwe and hand it over to her, effectively laundering the stolen funds through a network of individuals.
The state alleges that Makozho then embarked on regular trips from South Africa to Zimbabwe to collect the fraudulently obtained money. She is accused of depositing the cash into her South African bank account, further concealing the illicit funds and making it difficult to trace their origin.
In an attempt to further conceal her crimes and launder the stolen money, Makozho allegedly used the funds to acquire various properties, transforming herself into a mbinga, seemingly overnight. The acquisition of these properties was a calculated move to mask the source of her newfound wealth and create a legitimate facade.
The elaborate scheme was eventually uncovered following an audit conducted by Access Forex, which revealed the discrepancies and irregularities in the remittance accounts. The audit exposed the ghost accounts and the unauthorized transfers, prompting the company to alert the authorities.
On April 5 this year, detectives received a tip-off that Makozho was in her home area, Kada village, Chiredzi. Acting on this information, detectives swiftly moved to the village, where they located Makozho. However, when asked to identify herself, she allegedly lied to the police, providing a false name, Milicent Kwangwari.
Makozho was subsequently taken to ZRP Masvingo Rural, where her true identity was uncovered. A national identity card bearing her real name was found in her handbag, exposing her attempt to deceive the police. Confronted with the evidence, Makozho reportedly confessed that she had lied about her identity.
