The High Court of Zimbabwe, sitting in Harare, has convicted Hugh Tinashe Sibanda and Centenary Tobacco Company (Pvt) Ltd of fraud after they used forged documents to import 4.47 million litres of duty-free diesel between October 2022 and February 2023, resulting in a revenue loss of US$2.8 million to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA).
The brief facts of the case according to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) are that Sibanda deceived CMED (Pvt) Ltd by falsely claiming that his company had government authorisation to import duty-free fuel for agricultural purposes. He presented counterfeit letters from the Ministry of Agriculture and ZIMRA, enabling his company to evade duty payments.
The fraud was uncovered in January 2023 when ZIMRA discovered the documents were forged and sought payment from CMED. 
After a trial, Sibanda was convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison, with 5 years suspended for good behaviour, leaving him with an effective 15-year sentence.
Furthermore, Centenary Tobacco Company (Pvt) Ltd has been ordered to pay ZIMRA US$ 2.1 million, and the Sheriff of the High Court has been instructed to seize the company’s property to recover the outstanding funds.

Pindula News

The High Court in Zimbabwe found a man and a company guilty of fraud for using fake documents to import fuel without paying taxes, causing a loss of $2.8 million to the government. The man was sentenced to 20 years in prison, with 5 years suspended, while the company has to pay $2.1 million to the government. If they don't pay, their property will be seized. It all happened between October 2022 and February 2023, and the fraud was discovered in January 2023.

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