A former Nando’s till operator in Gweru has been ordered to complete 380 hours of community service after being convicted of defrauding the fast-food outlet of US$15,482.75 through fictitious Swipe transactions.
28-year-old Cynthia Jongwe of Jairos Jiri Road in Riverside, Gweru, was convicted of fraud by the Gweru Magistrates’ Court after manipulating the restaurant’s point-of-sale system to make cash payments appear as electronic transactions.
She was sentenced to 40 months in prison. However, the sentence was suspended under several conditions. Five months were suspended on condition of good behaviour, while 24 months were suspended on condition that she repays the money owed to Nando’s. The remaining 11 months were suspended on condition that she completes 380 hours of community service.
The case centred on a simple but costly deception. Jongwe received cash from customers but processed the sales as though the customers had paid through a bank card or mobile payment platform. She then produced receipts showing that the transactions had been completed electronically, even though no money had reached the restaurant’s accounts.
The transactions were recorded through payment facilities linked to Nando’s, including a CBZ Bank terminal, a TN CyberTech Bank terminal and the InnBucks platform. On the surface, the till records showed completed Swipe payments. However, the relevant banking systems contained no matching records.
The fraud was uncovered during an internal audit of transactions processed during Jongwe’s shifts. The audit team compared receipts and point-of-sale records with bank statements and payment-platform records. The review found that several payments shown as completed on the restaurant’s system had not resulted in any deposits.
Nando’s then contacted the relevant financial institutions to verify the transactions. Bank statements confirmed that the money had not been credited to the Gweru outlet. The investigation established that the restaurant had suffered a total loss of US$15,482.75, none of which had been recovered when the case was heard.
The complainant was Nando’s Gweru, represented in the proceedings by operations manager Chrispen Moyo. Fredrick Matsheza prosecuted the case.
The scheme relied on the gap between what appeared on the restaurant’s till and what appeared in the financial records of the banks and payment platforms. By recording a cash sale as a Swipe payment, Jongwe was able to issue a receipt to the customer while keeping the cash rather than depositing it with the business.
The false electronic entries also meant that the transactions could initially appear ordinary during the daily running of the restaurant. Customers received receipts, the tills showed that payments had been made and orders could be completed. The missing money only became clear when the sales records were checked against the actual funds received by the company.
The case has drawn attention to the risks faced by restaurants, retailers and other businesses that handle large numbers of cash and electronic transactions at the same time. Many outlets now accept payments through several banks, card terminals and mobile-money services, making accurate reconciliation essential.
A till receipt alone does not confirm that money has reached a company’s account. The payment must also be matched with a corresponding entry on the bank or mobile-money platform. Where that check is not done, a false transaction can remain hidden until a wider audit is carried out.
In Jongwe’s case, the payment records were eventually tested against the information held by the banks. The comparison exposed the difference between the transactions entered into the restaurant’s system and the money actually received. The missing amounts were then added together to establish the total prejudice of US$15,482.75.
The use of multiple payment platforms added another layer to the operation. The disputed entries were represented as having gone through the CBZ terminal, the TN CyberTech terminal and InnBucks. The court heard that the transactions appeared to have been processed, but there were no corresponding records confirming that the payments had reached Nando’s.
The incident also shows how access to a till can give an employee control over several stages of a sale. A till operator may receive payment, select the payment method, generate the receipt and close the transaction. If those functions are not checked independently, an employee can manipulate the record before the business reconciles its accounts.
The National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe said: “The conviction and sentence underscore the consequences of abusing a position of trust and manipulating financial systems to unlawfully deprive an employer of funds.”
Jongwe’s sentence combines imprisonment, restitution and community service. Although the prison term was suspended on conditions, the court ordered her to repay the full amount and complete the community-service requirement. Failure to meet the conditions could expose her to the consequences attached to the suspended sentence.