The Sunday News
Peter Matika, Senior Reporter
A CIVIL servant who was employed by the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement and doubling up as a ZB agent has been arrested after she allegedly defrauded the banking institution of nearly half a million dollars through fraudulent electronic transactions.
Chipo Pirukayi (37) who was employed as a cartographer by the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement at Mhlahlandlela Complex, appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Mr Franklyn Mkhwananzi on 10 November to answer to 79 cases of fraud.
She was remanded out of on $500 bail to 8 December for trial. According to the State, Pirukayi is facing up to 79 counts of fraud, as defined in section 136 (a) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Act) chapter 9:23, where she is alleged to have defrauded the bank, by opening fake accounts in names of her relatives and conducting fraudulent transactions.
She is alleged to have prejudiced ZB Bank of $427 707.80 for a period spanning almost a year. It is the State’s case that Pirukayi, who resides in Pelandaba suburb in Bulawayo, was a registered ZB Bank Point of Sale (POS) agent, whose duties were solely to offer services and products to clients such as opening of E – Wallet accounts, issuance of ATM cards, cash withdrawals, cash deposits and cash transfers.
Pirukayi was issued with a POS machine (ID 51310207) to enable her to execute her duties. The court heard that Pirukayi, between 24 January to 5 October this year, used the said POS machine to credit accounts created in the names of her relatives with fabricated figures. She allegedly claimed the said accounts had effected deposits into their E – Wallets, when she actually had done no such thing. Pirukayi, would then swipe into her POS machine using cards of non-existent clients mentioned in a list provided to the court.
She would then transfer money deposited into the accounts by the bank through the ZIPIT platform, internal transfer and sometimes make purchases with ATM cards. However, on 5 October a team of forensic auditors, including the bank conducted an audit of the ZB Bank E – Wallet banking system and discovered a series of inconsistences. ZB Bank immediately froze the accounts and only managed to recover $59 000.
According the bank one can only be registered as an agent after completing a rigorous application form, where one is required to produce identity particulars, proof of residence, registered mobile Zimbabwean number. Once registered the agent is then able to create E – Wallet accounts and issues clients with cards, referred to as ZB Bank Pauri Cards. The client thereafter swipes on the POS machine, in the presence of the agent to set a password.
The agent is thereafter compelled to take the client’s completed documents to ZB Bank to upload the data into the bank’s system. In this case Pirukayi, created nine fake accounts, which she used to defraud the bank. Mr Taurayi Hondoyemoto prosecuted.
