By Mary Taruvinga
FORMER Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo, who was arrested Monday, was Friday granted bail by a Harare magistrate after spending days in remand prison.
Chombo is facing one fraud count plus five criminal abuse of office charges.
According to the state, Chombo allegedly asked home-seekers to deposit varying sums of money for land purchases into his Chombo Housing Co-operative bank account.
He also allocated himself over 125 stands in Harare and parcelled out land through his companies – Comverol Enterprise, Cayford and Cavford in Carrick Creagh Farm in Harare without paying for the land.
However, Magistrate Stanford Mambanje granted him bail.
By Mary Taruvinga/VOA
FORMER Local Government minister Ignatius Chombo will remain in remand prison after his bail ruling was postponed Wednesday to this Thursday.
He appeared before Harare magistrate Stanford Mambanje.
Chombo is facing one fraud count plus five criminal abuse of office charges.
Chombo allegedly asked people to deposit varying sums of money for land purchases into his Chombo Housing Co-operative bank account, allocated himself over 125 stands in Harare and parceled out land through his companies – Comverol Enterprise, Cayford and Cavford in Carrick Creagh Farm in Harare without paying for the land.
He also allegedly sold state land and instructed government officials to sign a deed of settlement for Stoneridge Farm for Phillip Chiyangwa’s Pinnacle Holdings without Cabinet approval.
Ex-minister Chombo caged
BY RICHARD MUPONDE/MIRIAM MANGWAYA
FORMER Finance minister Ignatius Chombo was last night detained at Rhodesville Police Station in Harare following his arrest on charges of fraud and criminal abuse of office over illegal parcelling out of State land.
Chombo, who allegedly committed the offences during his tenure as Local Government minister in the late former President Robert Mugabe’s government, is alleged to have connived with the former First Lady Grace Mugabe to illegally acquire State land.
He was detained after being interrogated by the Special Anti-Corruption Unit (Sacu), a unit in President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s office, following his implication as a key figure in the illegal sale of State land in Justice Tendai Uchena’s Land Commission report.
Ingnatius Chombo
HARARE – Former Cabinet minister Ignatius Chombo has been arrested on charges emanating from his tenure as Minister of Local Government from year 2000 to 2015 including accusations of facilitating the grabbing of residential stands by the former First Lady Grace Mugabe who gave some of these stands to close family members and other relatives.
Chombo faces several counts of fraud and criminal abuse of office. He denies the charges.
The charges have been extracted from the report of the Land Commission headed by Justice Uchena.
“I responded extensively, in writing, to these allegations when I appeared before the aforesaid Commission. I attach herewith a copy of that written response as part or my response herein. I stand by that response…I committed no fraud or criminal abuse of office and at all times I executed my duties as a Government Minister in full Compliance with the law,” Chombo said in his warned and cautioned statement on Monday.