Fraud accused’s acquittal reversed

The trial of Intratrek director Wicknell Chivayo on US$5.6m fraud charges will proceed after the Supreme Court reversed his acquittal by the High Court. The National Prosecuting Authority had appealed against the High Court decision absolving Chivayo and his company of any criminal liability in the botched multi-m i l l i o n dollar deal with the Zimbabwe Power Company. Chivayo was facing three counts of fraud when High Court Judge Justice Owen Tagu cleared him of all the charges in a July 2018 ruling. The Herald reports that Tagu said it was a civil matter rather than a criminal case. Justice Rita Makarau said the High Court erred in interfering with the ‘unterminated criminal proceedings’ before the trial magistrate.