A 43-year-old Crown Bank employee has been arrested and brought before the Harare Magistrates’ Court on fraud charges after allegedly swindling a man out of US$96 000 through a fake loan collateral arrangement involving a deceased person.
The accused, Susan Shamiso Charewa of Aspindale Park, is alleged to have defrauded Leonard Mutunga, 44, by misrepresenting ownership of a residential property she offered as security for a loan.
According to the State, sometime in November 2024, Charewa approached Mutunga seeking financial assistance, claiming she urgently needed a US$96 000 loan.
She was accompanied by two men, whom she introduced as her father, Kennedy Chatambudza Chinyowa, and her son, Shingirirai Maruta.
To secure the loan, Charewa claimed her “father” had agreed to cede Stand Number 1879 Mutoko Road, New Marlborough, Harare, as collateral.
Based on the assurance, Mutunga handed over the cash on December 5, 2024, in the presence of a witness, Wadzanayi Manyika.
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A formal loan agreement was signed, stipulating that Charewa would repay the amount in three equal instalments of US$32 000 over three months.
However, by March 2025, no repayment had been made despite multiple efforts by the complainant to recover the money.
Mutunga later approached the High Court of Zimbabwe seeking to auction the property used as collateral.
Investigations revealed that the stand Charewa had pledged belonged to a deceased estate and was never legally in her possession.
It also emerged that the man she claimed was her father, Kennedy Chinyowa, had died on June 19, 2021—three years before the loan agreement.
After failing to recover his money or obtain a resolution from Charewa, Mutunga reported the matter to ZRP Milton Park. Charewa was arrested on December 3, 2025, at her workplace.
The complainant suffered an actual prejudice of US$96 000, and none of the funds have been recovered.
Charewa is expected to return to court on December 11,2025 for further proceedings.
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