A Bulawayo-based company director is facing serious fraud allegations after prosecutors accused him of manipulating an email trail to divert a US$125 000 payment intended for a Kenyan financial institution into a bank account in Zimbabwe.
Belene Ncube, a director of Malaba Solutions, appeared before Harare regional magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa yesterday and was granted US$500 bail on allegations of orchestrating the sophisticated payment diversion.
The complainant is Varichem Pharmaceuticals Private Limited, represented by its chief finance officer, Patricia Wadzanai Kamangirira.
According to the State, the alleged fraud began in August 2026 when Varichem was preparing to pay US$125 000 for services rendered by the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), a major regional financial institution based in Kenya.
Prosecutor Lawrence Gangarahwe told the court that on August 14, Varichem received an email from a person identifying himself as Sabelo Nkambule, who purported to be a TDB representative. The email contained an invoice for US$125 000.
The payment was initially destined for TDB’s account at Standard Chartered Bank in the United Kingdom.
But, according to the prosecution, the payment instructions were allegedly hijacked barely 20 minutes later.
Varichem allegedly received another email from an address resembling that of TDB, instructing the pharmaceutical company to abandon the original banking details and instead transfer the money to an NBS Bank Zimbabwe account purportedly belonging to TDB.
It was this change in banking instructions that prosecutors allege enabled the massive diversion.
On August 26, Varichem approved the transaction and transferred the full US$125 000 into the NBS Bank account.
The State alleges that Ncube subsequently gained access to the funds and began using part of the money to purchase goods locally.
The alleged scheme was uncovered the following day when Varichem followed up with TDB and discovered that the US$125 000 payment had never reached the intended recipient.
The discrepancy immediately triggered suspicion, resulting in a police report and an investigation into how the payment had been redirected.
Prosecutors allege that Ncube’s actions caused Varichem an actual financial loss of US$125 000.
So far, US$50 000 has reportedly been recovered, leaving US$75 000 outstanding.
The allegations paint a disturbing picture of how apparently routine corporate correspondence and banking instructions can be exploited to redirect substantial sums of money.
For businesses handling large international payments, the case is a stark warning about the dangers of relying solely on email instructions when bank-account details suddenly change.
Ncube, however, remains an accused person and has not been convicted of fraud. The allegations against him will have to be tested through the judicial process.
The matter continues before the courts.
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