Ishmael Munashe Sakonda, a 29-year-old money changer from Harare’s Glen Norah B neighbourhood, has been sentenced to 6 months in prison for illegally dealing in foreign currency.
Sakonda was arraigned before the Harare Magistrates’ Court and charged with contravening Section 5(1)(a)(ii) of the Exchange Control Act Chapter 22:05.
The charges also included violations of Section 4(1)(a) of the Exchange Regulations SI 109 of 1996, as amended by Section 2 of the Statutory Instrument 122A of 2017, as well as Sections 3 and 4(2) of SI 245 of 2018, all related to “dealing in currency”.
The court heard that on July 29, 2024, police detectives received information that the accused was illegally trading foreign currency at the Glenorah B Shopping Centre.
Two days later, undercover police officers approached Sakonda, posing as customers seeking to exchange ZiG for US dollars.
The accused offered the detectives a black market rate of US$1 to ZIG17. He then gave one of the officers a debit card to use for purchases at a nearby supermarket.
After the transaction, the officer returned the card to Sakonda and also gave him US$20 in trap money, which was the ZiG equivalent of the amount swiped at the supermarket.
Upon receiving the money, the police officers revealed their identities and immediately arrested Sakonda.
The court sentenced Sakonda to 6 months in prison, with 3 months suspended for 5 years. He will serve the remaining 3 months of the sentence.
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