Mbare Man in Court Over £20k UK Sponsorship Scam

Munyaradzi Mashiri | Court Correspondent

A Mbare man has landed in court after allegedly defrauding three individuals of a combined £20,500 in a scam involving fake UK sponsorship certificates.

Gabriel Kundai Dzangare appeared before Harare Magistrate Ruth Moyo facing three counts of fraud.

Represented by lawyers Panaishe Mujawo and Tinashe Toriro, he was remanded in custody to June 30 for a bail hearing.

According to the State, led by prosecutor Takudzwa Jambawu, Dzangare allegedly worked with Isheunesu Muzora and Ottilia Kudzanai Zenengeni—both already on remand—to lure victims through a WhatsApp group promoting a bogus company offering UK job sponsorship certificates.

The first victim, Anna Chari ,32, of Glen View 7, responded to the advert and was told the certificate would cost £6,000. After securing the money from her brother in the UK, she met Dzangare and one accomplice in central Harare, handed over the cash, and was issued an affidavit promising delivery within two weeks. The certificate never came.

The second victim, Trymore Manyange ,34, a waste collection worker from Waterfalls, also responded to the WhatsApp advert. He arranged for his UK-based brother-in-law to deposit £6,000 into a UK account linked to Dzangare and signed an affidavit confirming payment. Like Chari, he never received the certificate.

The third complainant, Paida Magore ,30, a teacher at Shalom Elite Junior School, lost £8,500. Her sister in the UK deposited the money into the same account, and Magore received an affidavit from Dzangare. Again, the promised certificate was never delivered.

Authorities say the arrest of Muzora and Zenengeni led to Dzangare’s exposure as a central figure in the scam.