HARARE – Business partners Moses Mpofu and Mike Chimombe were on Monday handed lengthy prison terms of 22 years and 17 years respectively after the High Court found them guilty of orchestrating a fraud that prejudiced the government of US$7.3 million in a tender to supply goats. Justice Pisirayi Kwenda of the Harare High Court sentenced Mpofu to 22 years, from which eight years were conditionally suspended – three years on condition of good behaviour and four years if he pays restitution, leaving him with 15 years effective. Chimombe received 17 years, with five suspended on similar conditions, giving him 12 years effective.
Chimombe will restitute $964,000 which the court directed should be paid by February 26, 2026. The sentencing brought an end to a months-long trial during which the pair had denied all wrongdoing. The judge, however, found that both men acted jointly in creating and using a fictitious company to win the contract and divert public funds.
He said the evidence showed clear coordination between them, noting that “the offence was organised crime and they are co-perpetrators.” Their lawyers said they would appeal both the convictions and sentences at the Supreme Court. Professor Lovemore Madhuku, for Chimombe, said: “The Supreme Court was not put in place for nothing. I think this is one of the best cases to take to the Supreme Court.” Mpofu and Chimombe were convicted of using forged documents to secure a tender to supply 632,001 goats under a government livestock pass-on scheme valued at US$87,757,16.
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The contract would be paid in three instalments, with the first to the tune of $26 million. The tender was awarded to Blackdeck Private Limited, but prosecutors said an unregistered entity, Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming, later signed contractual documents with the agriculture ministry. On review, Blackdeck was found not to possess a valid tax clearance certificate for 2021 and that a QR code on an NSSA compliance certificate belonged to a different company, Skywalk Investments.
Following the award of the tender, the ministry of agriculture paid ZWL1.6 billion — equivalent to US$7,712,197 at the time — in two instalments in 2022. Justice Kwenda said the two men conspired to mislead authorities, pointing to the shifting company identities. He described Blackdeck’s presentation as “so sophisticated… carefully thought… and confusing,” saying this eliminated any notion that ministry officials failed in their duties.
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