BY DANIEL NHAKANISO

CONRAD Rautenbach further kept his hopes of challenging for the coveted title in this year’s Dakar Rally alive after powering to a sixth place finish during the prestigious race’s third stage in Neom, Saudi Arabia yesterday to follow up on his third place finish on Monday.

The 35-year-old top Zimbabwean rally driver finished the 427km super stage, three minutes 48 seconds behind the stage winner Gerard Guell from Spain, while Russian Sergei Kariakin finished in second position.

Rautenbach’s solid performance moved him into sixth position on the overall standings in the SSV category, 22 minutes, 50 seconds behind the lead held by American motor rally driver Casey Currie with nine stages left in the 2020 Dakar Rally.

Currie finished third during yesterday’s third stage to take the lead in the general standings, just 15 seconds ahead of Chilean motor rally driver Francisco Lopez.

The two-time African Rally Champion spoke to Dakar.com after the third stage of his strategy during the third stage.

“During the first part we had to go quite slowly with all the rocks and canyons and the last part was really nice and sandy and the beautiful landscape. We pushed a little bit more, the car is fantastic, Pedro is doing a good job on the navigation so it’s all good,” he said.

Rautenbach was full of praises for the desert landscape in Saudi Arabia saying it offered the true test expected in a gruelling rally event such as the Dakar.

“From what I’ve seen so far Saudi Arabia is beautiful, the country has nice landscape, all the perfect ingredients for a Dakar. I’m very happy so far,” he said.

Meanwhile Zimbabwe’s other representative Graeme Sharp put on a solid performance to finish 82nd out of the remaining 121 competitors in the motorbike section to move to position 89 on the overall standings.

Ross Branch of Botswana — who won the second stage in the bike section on Monday — finished in position 41 yesterday after stopping during the race to help fellow competitor Andrew Short from USA jeopardising his place.

BY CHARLES LAITON

THE Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) has approached the High Court seeking to reclaim Mujingwe Conservancy in Masvingo, which it claims was illegally seized from a mining firm by another company and several individuals.

In an application, through its acting director-general George Manyumwa, ZimParks said Haigwari Safaris (Pvt) Ltd evicted Apatron Mining Fort Rixon (Apatron) from the conservancy, which apparently is under the control of ZimParks.

Apatron was evicted through a default judgment.

“The applicant (ZimParks) only learnt of this default judgment when the ninth respondent (Apatron) was ejected from Mujingwe Conservancy by the first to the eighth respondents on December 10, 2019. The applicant had peaceful possession of the land at this stage. The peaceful possession was interfered with by the first to the eighth respondents, who have now taken the land (Mujingwe Conservancy) and settled there while at the same time conducting operations therefrom,” Manyumwa said in his founding affidavit.

According to the court papers, after the ejectment, Apatron filed an application for rescission of the default judgment and another one for stay of execution pending the finalisation of the application for rescission, but its application for stay of execution was dismissed on the basis that execution had already taken place.

However, ZimParks still maintains that the lease agreement between the Environment and Tourism ministry and Haigwari Safaris (Pvt) Ltd and the other respondents, who have since taken occupation of the conservancy, was cancelled way back in 2014.

“This is an urgent chamber application for an order restoring the status quo ante (previously existing state of affairs), restoring undisturbed possession of the land to the applicant. The first to the eighth respondents cannot have access to the land until they prove their case against the applicant,” Manyumwa said.

“Consequently, the applicant has also made a case for the ejectment of the first to the eighth respondents. They have no right to be on the land since the dispute under HC1057/19 is still live and their claim to the land is still in dispute. Should the dispute under HC1057/19 be resolved in the favour of the first to the eighth respondents, they would then have the right to move on to the property and only then.”

However, in response to the application, Haigwari Safaris and all the other cited respondents in the matter denied having evicted Apatron from the land in question, saying the miners were “still on the conservancy and carrying out their duties in harmony with them”.

The matter is pending.

BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE

A KWEKWE magistrate and clerk of court have been arrested on a charge of criminal abuse of office for allegedly facilitating the release of a stolen vehicle to controversial businessman Shepherd Tundiya.

Magistrate Story Rushambwa (48) and clerk of court Bright Mpiyabo (45) yesterday appeared before Harare regional magistrate Bianca Makwande, who granted them $2 000 bail each.

Allegations are that sometime in September 2018, a Mercedes-Benz vehicle was impounded by CID Kwekwe from Tundiya as suspected stolen property. The vehicle was allegedly stolen from South Africa and smuggled into Zimbabwe.

It was then handed over to Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) for further management pending finalisation of investigations by the South Africa Police Service and possible settling of duty in terms of the Customs and Excise Act.

It is the State’s case that on December 9 last year, Tundiya made an ex-parte application seeking the release of the motor vehicle to him.

On the same day, Rushambwa presided over the matter and granted an order that the vehicle be released unconditionally to Tundiya.

It is alleged the order issued by Rushambwa was prejudicial to Zimra and the other respondents, thereby showing favour to Tundiya and disfavour to Zimra and CID Kwekwe.

The State alleges the motor vehicle can no longer be located as a result of the release.

It is also alleged that sometime in October last year, a Toyota Hilux vehicle was impounded by the police anti-corruption unit from John Mapurazi.

The vehicle was taken as an exhibit in a case of fraud in Bulawayo after it was fraudulently imported into the country.

The State alleges the Toyota Hilux vehicle was then handed over to Zimra for customs management until finalisation of trial.

It is alleged on December 27 last year, Mapurazi made an ex-parte application seeking the release of the vehicle to him.

The accused magistrate is said to have connived with Mpiyabo to withhold the record on December 31 until he arrived at court to deal with the application despite being on leave.

The State alleges Mpiyabo then placed the record before Rushambwa to preside over the matter well knowing he was on leave.

Rushambwa presided over the application in the absence of Mapurazi, who was now being represented by Tundiya, who is not a lawyer, and went on to grant the order for the release of the motor vehicle to Mapurazi.

It is alleged the vehicle remained an exhibit in a criminal trial at Bulawayo Magistrates Court and in breach of import regulations of Zimbabwe.

The motor vehicle can no longer be located and is required in a criminal trial as an exhibit in February 2020.

The prosecution alleges that as a result, the State was prejudiced of revenue in the form of customs duty and a possible loss of the State’s case.

BY CHARLES LAITON

REGAL Insurance Company (Pvt) Ltd, which was suspended from operating following its failure to settle policy claims, has approached the High Court with an application for rescission of judgment after its property was recently attached over a $1 400 303 debt owed to policyholders.

The insurance company was suspended by the Insurance and Pensions Commission (Ipec) on allegations of fleecing policyholders, but the company’s chairperson Jerious Mkondo refuted the allegations in his recent court application accusing former employees, including suspended chief executive officer, of having created a scam to bring the firm down.

Mkondo said his former employees allegedly hatched a plan to defraud the firm by facilitating the obtaining of a default judgment over payments that were supposed to have been administered and settled by Ipec.

“This is an application for rescission of a default judgment that was granted in favour of the first respondent (Regal Insurance Policy Holders Association) on June 7, 2019 which applicant became aware of on November 15, 2019 for the sum of $1 400 303 together with cots and collection commission,” Mkondo said.

“The applicant (Regal Insurance Company (Pvt) Ltd) was not in wilful default, as it is suspected that one of its former employees fraudulently facilitated the granting of the default judgment.”

Mkondo said when Regal Insurance Policy Holders Association (RIPHA) issued summons against the firm, “which where purportedly served on it”, there was no appearance, but the association proceeded to obtain default judgment against it.

“It has now emerged that first respondent was formed by some of applicant’s former employees who were working with some of the applicant’s debtors to defraud the applicant. The summons was therefore not deliberately defended and default judgment entered against the applicant in the sum of $1 400 303 as this was a fraudulent scheme involving applicant’s former employees,” he said.

“It is clear that in view of the quantum involved, applicant would not have ignored the summons. It can only be an inside job which has seen the suspension of the chief executive office involved in the scam.”

Mkondo further noted that pursuant to the default judgment, a writ of execution against movable property was issued against his firm on June 24, 2019, but no nulla bona return was produced, adding that the next his firm saw was the notice to sell the company’s property by public auction on November 15, 2019.

“The property was sold on November 15, 2019 by public auction for $1 800 000, but was later cancelled and will proceed by public treaty.”

The matter is pending.

By Miriam Mangwaya

A BEATRICE farm worker allegedly murdered his 77-year-old employer and dumped her body in a dam on Sunday before he also died in a road traffic accident the following day.

The suspect of Jefferson Farm in Beatrice, who was only identified as Sonboy, allegedly struck the now-deceased Esther Muhambi with a mattock on the head, tied her onto a rock and threw the body into a dam. He later fled with her Toyota Raum vehicle which he was later involved in an accident with.

Mashonaland East police spokesperson Inspector Tendai Mwanza could not be reached for comment.

However, according to police sources, on January 4, Sonboy and Muhambi drove to a nearby garden about 2km from their homestead.

The suspect later returned home alone.

He sent his co-worker to go and buy rice. When the co-worker returned, Sonboy was not at home. He also discovered that their employer’s vehicle was not there as well.

The following day, Claudius Ngandu, a neighbour, received a phone call from Norton police that Sonboy was involved in an accident while driving a Totoya Raum.

Ngandu inquired whether Muhambi was in the vehicle, but he was told she was not.

Ngandu later informed another neighbour that Muhambi was missing and a search for her began. They went to her garden and saw drag marks towards a dam. They found the deceased’s body tied onto a rock.

The matter was reported to the police.