Pizza Inn loses US$1000 to employee Innbucks fraud

Michael Mashiri

A Pizza Inn manager and another employee transferred funds into the account of an accomplice to defraud the company of US$1000.

Tawanda Taruvinga and his subordinate Kudakwashe Eugene Makoni used the credentials of other employees to make fraudulent transactions deliberately prejudicing Pizza Inn of US$1000.

The matter came to light in a case where the state opposed bail for Heather Tinashe Tawira ,28, of Mabvuku who appeared before magistrate Dennis Mangosi facing theft charges according to Section 113 of the (1) (a) (b) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act Chapter 9:23.

Pizza Inn, represented by Industrial and labour relations officer Clyde Dube are the complainant.

Allegations are that Takawira is a friend to accused Kudakwashe Eugene Makoni who has already appeared in the same court of related charges and remanded out of custody.

On 9 September, two transactions of US$200-00 each were deposited into Innbucks account of Takawira without Pizza Inn receiving any cash from the accused.

Kudakwashe Eugene Makoni and his manager Tawanda Taruvinga used a security pin assigned to cashier Bridget Mvuraichana for the transaction. US$250-00 at Chicken Inn Lister and US$142-00 at Backers Inn Robert Mugabe, Harare were withdrawn from Takawira’s account.

On 11 September 2022, two transactions of US$200-00 initiated by Makoni and approved by Taruvinga were carried out using Mvuraichana's pin. Again no corresponding cash was deposited into Innbucks.

Takawira’s account was used to withdraw US$390-00 at Chicken Inn Lister.

On 11 September 2022, a similar fraudulent transaction resulted in US$200-00 being deposited into another account belonging to one Nikos Muleya who is still at large.

Makoni and Taruvinga used cashier Samantha Tumbare’s pin. In all cases Mvuraichana and Tumbare were not on duty at the time the transactions were effected.

On the September 14, 2022, Pizza Inn filed police reports against the Takawira and Muleya’s mobile numbers after discovering the discrepancies.

Police investigation linked Makoni to Takawira through mobile phone call records and he was arrested on September 27.

Makoni implicated Taruvinga who was also arrested.The two were granted bail.

Taruvinga in turn implicated Takawira. After learning of Makoni and Taruvinga’s arrest, Takawira went on the run. Detectives got a tip off and arrested at her sister's place in New Tafara on November 15.

Magistrate Dennis Mangosi remanded the accused to 21 November 2022.