Retired Army Personnel ‘Hazel Mafu’ In a Fix As More Customers Cry Foul….Past Fraud, Scams Unearthed!

Harare, Zimbabwe | The promise of an affordable, imported vehicle is a dream for many Zimbabweans. For years, HezyMotors Logistics, a Milton Park-based vehicle import company, sold exactly that dream. Aggressively marketed across social media platforms and endorsed by prominent influencers, the company positioned itself as a reliable partner for those looking to import cars from Japan and Tanzania. However, behind the glossy advertisements and carefully curated public image of its CEO, Hazel Mafu, lies a disturbing trail of deceit, forged documents, and shattered dreams.

Recent investigations and a growing chorus of victims have exposed HezyMotors as the center of an elaborate fraud syndicate. The allegations paint a damning picture of a company that preys on unsuspecting customers, taking substantial deposits for vehicles that never arrive, while its leadership faces serious criminal charges for defrauding the state.

Hazel Mafu, the CEO and founder of HezyMotors Logistics, has long cultivated a public persona of a self-made entrepreneur. In numerous social media posts and interviews, she frequently recounts her “struggle to success” story, claiming to have been born in a small village in Zimbabwe and overcoming immense financial hardships to build a nationwide business empire. This narrative of perseverance and hard work garnered her nominations for awards such as the Zimbabwe Women in Business Forum National Awards and secured her speaking engagements at various entrepreneurial events.

However, exclusive information reveals a different facet of Mafu’s background. Before her rise in the corporate world, Hazel Mafu served as an army personnel in the Zimbabwe National Army, officially retiring on January 1, 2024. This military background, while not inherently problematic, raises serious questions about a potential perception of her being ‘untouchable’ due to her connections. It suggests a level of systemic knowledge and access that may have been exploited in the execution of the alleged frauds, particularly those involving government ministries, and could be a factor in the apparent lack of sustained legal action against her despite mounting evidence.

The first major crack in the HezyMotors facade appeared in June 2023, when Hazel Mafu and her associate, Emmanuel Nyagano, were arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) in conjunction with the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA).

The charges leveled against them were severe: using fake civil servants’ rebate exemption letters to import vehicles duty-free.

The government of Zimbabwe grants tax rebates to civil servants to allow them to import vehicles without paying exorbitant import duties. Mafu and Nyagano allegedly exploited this system with calculated precision. According to the state’s case, the duo purchased a 2013 Toyota Sienta from Japan and forged a civil servant rebate letter in the name of Dumiso Sibanda, an employee of the Home Affairs Ministry, without his knowledge or consent.

By presenting this forged document to ZIMRA officials, they successfully imported the vehicle without paying the required duty. The car was then registered in Sibanda’s name and deployed as a pirate taxi in Harare.

This was not an isolated incident. In September 2022, the accused reportedly repeated the process, importing a 2014 Toyota Sentra using a forged rebate letter in the name of Erick Chemhere, an employee of the Defence Ministry.

Once again, the vehicle was used as a pirate taxi. The state alleged that ZIMRA lost an estimated US$13,500 in potential import duty revenue from these transactions alone. This operation was part of a broader crackdown by ZACC and ZIMRA, which saw the seizure of approximately 36 vehicles and the arrest of multiple car dealers in Harare for similar offenses.

While the state was dealing with the rebate fraud, a separate, arguably more devastating, scam was unfolding against ordinary citizens. By late 2025, a storm of complaints began to surface on social media and consumer protection platforms regarding HezyMotors Logistics.

The modus operandi was simple but effective. HezyMotors aggressively advertised on Facebook and other platforms, offering attractive deals on imported vehicles. Customers were required to pay a 50% deposit upfront, with the promise that their vehicles would be delivered within a specified timeframe, usually around six weeks.

However, the reality was starkly different. Victims reported paying deposits ranging from US$2,000 to US$5,000, only to be met with endless delays and excuses. One distraught customer recounted paying a US$3,700 deposit in May 2025, only to be told five months later that the car was “still in Tanzania”.

When customers demanded answers or refunds, the company’s response was chillingly uniform: silence.

“If you try to call them, they ignore you. When you comment on their Facebook posts asking about your car, they delete your comment and block you.” — Victim of the HezyMotors Scam

The scale of the deception was further amplified by the company’s sophisticated public relations strategy. Whistleblowers revealed that HezyMotors employed a network of “ghost accounts” on Facebook—using names like Jack Demo, Bismak, and Catherine Penduka—to flood their posts with fake positive reviews and drown out the complaints of genuine victims. Furthermore, the company leveraged the reach of popular social media influencers, such as Admire, Mama Vee, and Clide Rice, to endorse their services, lending an aura of legitimacy to what was essentially a well-orchestrated scam.

The allegations against Hazel Mafu and HezyMotors Logistics paint a picture of a systematic and ruthless fraud syndicate. From defrauding the state through forged government documents to scamming hard-working citizens out of their life savings, the impact of these actions is profound.

Despite the clear evidence and Mafu’s previous arrest in June 2023 for using fake rebate letters, a pervasive question lingers: why has there been no decisive and sustained action from law enforcement? Many victims feel powerless, unable to pursue legal action due to the prohibitive costs of lawyers and court fees, but the apparent inaction of the police and the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) in the face of such widespread fraud is deeply concerning. Is it possible that Mafu’s past as an army personnel, retiring as recently as January 1, 2024, has afforded her a shield of ‘untouchability’ within certain circles?

This perceived impunity undermines public trust and emboldens fraudsters. ZACC, in particular, has a mandate to investigate and combat corruption at all levels. The mounting complaints from defrauded citizens, coupled with the earlier arrest for state fraud, demand a comprehensive and transparent investigation into not only HezyMotors’ operations but also the reasons behind the apparent lack of progress in bringing Mafu to justice. The public deserves to know why a figure with such a documented history of alleged fraudulent activities continues to operate with seemingly little consequence.

As the evidence mounts and more victims come forward, the true cost of the HezyMotors dream is finally being exposed. It is imperative that those responsible are held accountable, not only to secure justice for the victims but to restore faith in the integrity of Zimbabwe’s business sector and its institutions of law and order.