High Court Reschedules Mpofu And Chimombe Fraud Trial
The trial of Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu, who are facing fraud charges, was postponed to next Monday after Chimombe failed to show up for trial yesterday, reported NewZimbabwe.com.
Chimombe and Mpofu are accused of defrauding the state of US$7 million in a Presidential Goats Pass-on Scheme.
According to a letter from doctors submitted before High Court Judge Pisirayi Kwenda, Chimombe is currently ill and will require at least seven days to recuperate.
His lawyer, Ashiel Mugiya, asked for a postponement of the trial to next Monday to allow his client to heal. Said Mugiya:
The basis of the application is that the second accused person, Mike Chimombe is not feeling well and is not in a state that he could stand trial.
I received a document dated the 22nd of February 2025 in which a medical practitioner attended to the second accused person.
The document indicates that the accused is expected to recuperate within seven days so my application is that the matter be postponed to Monday next week, on the 3rd of March for commencement of trial.
Mugiya asked the court for an order to have Chimombe examined by a state doctor.
The prosecutor, Witness Mabhaudhi, disagreed with the request for a court order but did not object to delaying the trial. Said Mabhaudhi:
It’s unlike a mental health issue. No one is challenging that medical report. We expect him (Chimombe) to be here on Monday so there is no need for him to be examined by a doctor. The matter has been remanded so that should suffice.
The presiding judge, Kwenda, agreed to postpone the trial to Monday but sided with the state, deciding not to issue a court order for Chimombe to be examined by state doctors.
Chimombe and Mpofu have been in custody since their arrest in June 2024, and all their attempts to secure freedom have failed.
Their trial has faced many delays since they were indicted, with multiple postponements for various reasons.
The two also made an unsuccessful application to have their case referred to the Constitutional Court.
Mpofu and Chimombe allege that Wicknell Chivayo orchestrated their arrest after they leaked audios exposing alleged corruption in a US$40 million tender for election materials.
They claim Chivayo told them they wouldn’t get a fair share of the tender money because he had to “pay his people in government.”
Despite their claims, Chivayo has not been questioned by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), leading Mpofu and Chimombe to accuse the authorities of selective prosecution.
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