By Faustine Kapama
THIRTEEN people, including former officials with the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) appeared before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court in Dar es Salaam on Monday facing six economic charges,
including defacing banknotes and occasioning loss of 4.6bn/- to the Central Bank.They are Mariagoreth Kunzugala (29), Henry Mbowe (36), Asha Sekiboko (30), Cecilia Mpande (49), Agripina Komba (55), Zubeda Mjewa (50), Khadija Kassunsumo (57) and Mwanaheri Omary (53), who are all BoT ex-officers.
Others are businesspersons Alistides Genand (44), residing at Chanika, Shukuru Mchegage (28), from Chamanzi, Musa Chengula (39), a resident at Buguruni Mnyamani, Zaituni Chihipo (34), from Mbondole and Respicius Rutashubilwa (44), from Kunduchi.
Other charges against them include leading organised crime, fraudulent schemes and money laundering. They were not allowed to enter pleas to the charges against them before the Senior Resident Magistrate in Charge Godfrey Isaya because they fall under the Economic and Organised Crime Control Act.
The magistrate told the accused that his court lacked jurisdiction to entertain anything, including the question of bail because the money laundering count is not bailable and that their case will be heard by the High Court's Corruption and Economic Crime Division upon completion of investigations.
Since the offence is unbailable, the magistrates ordered them to remain in custody, pending the completion of the investigations and subsequent committal proceedings of the cases to the trial court.
The prosecution team led by Principal State Attorney Paul Kadushi, Senior State Attorney Wankyo Simon as well as State Attorneys Jacqueline Nyantory and Tilumanywa Majigo informed the court that investigations into the case have not been completed.
They requested the court to set another mention date to allow the prosecution to complete the investigations. The magistrate granted the request and adjourned the case to December 28, 2020 for another mention.
Initially, the prosecution had told the court that on diverse dates between January 1, 2017 and September 30, 2019 at various places in Dar es Salaam, being public officials employed by BoT, in violation of their official duties, all bank officers intentionally furthered the objective of a criminal racket.
The court heard that within the same period within the commercial city, being not public officials but in collusion with public officers employed by the Central Bank, all five business persons intentionally furthered the objective of a criminal racket by mutilating banknotes with intent to reap profit.
It is alleged that between January 1, 2017 and September 30, 2019 at various places in Dar es Salaam, without authority, all accused persons willfully cut 460,000 bank notes of 10,000/- denominations which is a legal tender, equivalent to 4.6bn/-.
The prosecution told the court that on the same dates and place in the city, pursuant to a scheme to defraud, jointly and together and by false pretences, all accused persons knowingly obtained 1,533,000,000/- from the BoT as benefit from the said fraudulent scheme.
It is alleged that the accused persons submitted to the Central Bank spoiled bank notes for exchange. All accused persons were also charged with an offence of money laundering, an offence which is alleged to have been committed between January 1, 2017 and September 30, 2019 in Dar es Salaam.
The prosecution told the court that all accused persons engaged directly in a transaction that involved money amounting to 1,533,000,000/- while they knew that the sum is proceeds of a predicate offence of participating in an organised criminal group and racketing and obtaining money by false pretences.
It is further alleged that within the same period, jointly and together, knowingly and by their willful acts, Mariagoreth, Henry, Asha, Cecilia, Agripina, Zubeda, Khadija, Mwanaheri, Alistides, Shukuru, Chengula, Zaituni and Respicius caused the Bank of Tanzania to suffer a pecuniary loss of 4.6bn/-
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