THREE Bulawayo men have appeared in court facing theft charges after allegedly manipulating an EcoCash software system to steal money from account holders.
Nimrod Sibanda (20), Mbongeni Dube (18) and Delight Ncube (24) appeared before Bulawayo provincial magistrate Isheunesu Matova facing six counts of theft.
Sibanda also faces two additional charges, separate from those involving his co-accused, allegedly committed using a similar modus operandi.
According to court papers, the trio allegedly stole US$2 102 and ZWL$45 200 from several EcoCash account holders. Sibanda is further accused of stealing an additional US$721 in the separate cases.
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The three were each granted US$150 bail through their lawyer, Tinashe Tashaya of Tashaya Law Chambers.
Prosecutor Joseph Rugara told the court that on June 15, near a food outlet close to Tredgold Building, the accused allegedly used software known as Yamurai to steal US$1 669 and ZWL$11 500 from an EcoCash account holder.
The State alleges that they later used the same software to steal ZWL$20 600 and US$75 from another EcoCash customer.
“The accused persons further used the same modus operandi to steal US$18. They took another ZWL$2 100 from Peter Matsika’s EcoCash account, US$340 from Edmore Maphosa’s account and a further ZWL$11 000 from Emmanuel Chakauya,” Rugara said.
He further alleged that Sibanda, acting alone on separate occasions, stole US$270 from Letwin Makombe and US$451 from Dzinoreva Mhangarai through similar means.
The State opposed bail, arguing that the offences involved the manipulation of online systems and that the accused could interfere with electronic evidence or abscond if released.
“Your Worship, Sibanda was the main actor in the commission of the offence. He is employed at Econet and was responsible for providing information to his co-accused Ncube,” Rugara submitted.
“The evidence linking the accused persons to the offence is electronic in nature. Given the delicacy of the matter, the State fears they may tamper with evidence if released. They may also continue committing similar offences.”
In response, Tashaya argued that the State had failed to present compelling reasons to justify denying his clients bail.
“Bail is a constitutional right that can only be denied where compelling reasons exist. The submissions by the State do not establish such reasons,” he said.
Tashaya maintained that the three accused enjoy the presumption of innocence and that the allegations raised by the State were evidential matters to be tested during trial.
He further argued that his clients worked as agents and did not have direct access to EcoCash systems.
“Agents do not have access to clients’ information unless the Econet systems are porous. Even if a SIM card is replaced, the EcoCash PIN remains the secret of the account holder,” he said.
“Chances are high that you are holding the wrong people before this court.”
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