HARARE – A Harare high school headmaster has been apprehended on allegations of fraud involving a substantial sum of US$84,000. This development coincides with the arrest of a Crown Bank employee accused of swindling a Dairibord executive out of US$96,000 in a separate, elaborate loan collateral scam.
Tayengwa Christopher Maponga, the head of Friendship High School, was arrested following the opening of a case at Borrowdale Police Station last week on Monday, under case number CR 03/12/25.
Maponga’s arrest was part of a wider operation that also saw Milcah Machi, the current head of Girls High School and former head of Friendship High before Maponga, and Tendai Kuhudzayi, currently a deputy head at Marlborough High School, being taken into custody. Kuhudzayi was previously the deputy head at Friendship High before her transfer and has since been suspended by the Primary and Secondary Education ministry.
A fourth individual, Tichaona Kunyenda, the school bursar, is reportedly on the run and is currently being sought by authorities.
The four individuals are jointly facing an embezzlement charge involving US$84,000, with the case now under the purview of the Commercial Crime Division, Northern Region.
The investigation into Maponga’s activities was triggered by a complaint from Samasave Security Services, who alleged non-payment for services rendered, amounting to US$6,050. The security company accused Maponga of managing the school like a “private firm or tuckshop.” After their demands for payment were allegedly ignored, Samasave Security Services escalated the matter to the National Anti-Corruption Association of Zimbabwe and education authorities.
In a letter dated August 5, 2025, which NewsDay has seen, Samasave Security Services expressed their frustration to Maponga, stating, “Time for lawyers to exchange letters has come and gone, now is the time for action towards reality and recovery.”
Samasave further stated, “We will not rest until our voice is heard by the highest office of the land or justice prevails, as this will also send a clear message to other school heads to exercise due diligence on duty and not turn government schools into a private firm or tuckshop.”
Maponga, Machi, and Kuhudzayi are expected to appear in court soon to answer to the charges against them.
In a separate case, Susan Shamiso Charewa, an employee of Crown Bank, appeared before the Harare Magistrates’ Court last week, facing fraud charges after allegedly defrauding Dairibord’s group finance director, Leonard Mutunga, of US$96,000 in a meticulously planned fake loan collateral scam involving a deceased person.
Crown Bank, formerly known as Standard Chartered Zimbabwe, underwent a name change in July 2024 after being acquired by FBC Holdings in May 2024. The bank, with a history dating back to 1892, now operates as a subsidiary of FBC Holdings.
Charewa, who resides in Aspindale Park, is accused of defrauding Mutunga (44) by misrepresenting the ownership of a residential property offered as security for the loan. She has been remanded in custody and is awaiting a bail ruling today before Harare magistrate, Ms Ruth Moyo.
According to Prosecutor Mr Takudzwa Jambawu, in November 2024, Charewa approached Mutunga seeking financial assistance, claiming she urgently needed a US$96,000 loan.
Charewa was accompanied by two men, whom she introduced as her father, Kennedy Chatambudza Chinyowa, and her son, Shingirirai Maruta.
To secure the loan, Charewa allegedly claimed that her father had agreed to cede Stand Number 1879, Mutoko Road, New Marlborough, Harare, as collateral.
Mutunga, trusting her assurances, handed over the cash on December 5, 2024, in the presence of a witness, Wadzanayi Manyika.
A formal loan agreement was signed, stipulating that Charewa would repay the sum in three equal instalments of US$32,000 over three months.
However, by March 2025, Charewa had failed to honour the repayment agreement, despite numerous attempts by Mutunga to recover the funds.
Mutunga then sought legal recourse from the High Court of Zimbabwe to auction the property used as collateral.
However, investigations revealed that the pledged property belonged to a deceased estate and was never legally owned by Charewa.
Further investigations revealed that the man she introduced as her father, Kennedy Chinyowa, had passed away on June 19, 2021, three years before the loan agreement was signed.
After exhausting all avenues to recover his money, Mutunga reported the matter to ZRP Milton Park.
Charewa was subsequently arrested at her workplace on December 3, 2025. Authorities have not recovered any of the defrauded funds.
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