2 In Dock For Fraud, Fake Claims and a US$30 Million Mining Empire Takeover

A staggering alleged corporate fraud that could rank among Zimbabwe’s most brazen mining takeover scandals has landed two miners before the courts, amid accusations that they engineered a calculated scheme to seize control of a lucrative mining company and assets reportedly worth close to US$30 million.

John Farley Pietersen (66) and Peter Mark Johnstone (58) appeared before Harare magistrate Jesse Kufa facing fraud charges linked to what prosecutors describe as a deliberate and unlawful takeover of All Aflame Marketing (Pvt) Ltd, the company that owns the Royal Family mining claims in Filabusi.

The pair were granted bail of US$500 each and are expected back in court next Wednesday.

According to court papers, the alleged scheme targeted DGL Finance Limited, a Mauritius-based investment firm that holds a controlling stake in All Aflame Marketing. The company is represented by executive director David Peter Easterbrook and Allan Brent Dolan, who prosecutors say were effectively pushed out of the company during the disputed takeover.

Prosecutors allege that Pietersen and Johnstone launched legal proceedings under High Court case HC 5655/25 and deliberately ensured that court documents were served at an address the company had long since abandoned on Plumtree Road in Bulawayo.

The State contends that the accused were fully aware that the company had relocated to Wolverhampton Road in Donnington, yet allegedly persisted with serving documents at the obsolete address. Even after the Sheriff reportedly confirmed that the company no longer operated from the premises, the accused allegedly continued to insist that service had been properly effected.

In a development that prosecutors say raises serious questions about the integrity of the entire process, the State alleges that Pietersen and Johnstone had previously served legal papers at the company’s correct address in an unrelated matter, demonstrating that they knew exactly where the business was operating.

The alleged deception paved the way for a default judgment after the matter proceeded unopposed, with company representatives unaware that legal proceedings affecting their interests were underway.

Authorities allege that the judgment became the weapon used to wrest control of the company, enabling the accused to secure a staggering 57.45 percent shareholding in All Aflame Marketing and effectively place the mining operation under their control.

But the alleged takeover did not end there.

The State says Pietersen and Johnstone subsequently approached the Registrar of Companies armed with a High Court order dated February 5 and allegedly misrepresented its contents. Prosecutors claim they falsely indicated that Easterbrook and Dolan had resigned as directors on May 13, creating the basis for their own appointment to the board.

Investigators allege that the court order never authorised the resignation, removal or replacement of directors, making the representations submitted to company authorities entirely misleading.

As a result, official company records were allegedly altered, existing directors removed and the accused installed at the helm of the mining company.

Prosecutors argue that the entire operation was built on knowingly false representations designed to secure control of valuable mining assets through deception rather than legitimate corporate processes.

The fallout has been enormous.

The alleged scheme has reportedly exposed DGL Finance Limited and its investment partners to losses estimated at nearly US$30 million, turning the case into one of the most significant corporate fraud matters currently before the courts.

The case has also reignited concerns over the vulnerability of mining assets to sophisticated corporate manipulation and the ease with which ownership structures can allegedly be altered through questionable legal manoeuvres.

As the criminal proceedings unfold, the spotlight will now fall on how a company controlling valuable mining claims could allegedly be stripped of its ownership and leadership through what prosecutors describe as a carefully orchestrated campaign of misrepresentation.

For investors already wary of governance risks in Zimbabwe’s mining sector, the allegations paint a deeply troubling picture of an alleged corporate raid with multi-million-dollar consequences.