Mujuru denies links with probe gold dealer

via Mujuru denies links with probe gold dealer by Staff Reporter NewZimbabwe 24/09/2013

VICE President Joice Mujuru has been forced to deny any links with a man under investigation for mining and exporting gold illegally.

Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) president Trynos Nkomo, 47, appeared before a Gwanda magistrate on Monday charged with deliberately supplying false information to the police by allegedly claiming that Mujuru was his partner in a company called Matshamahle Mining Private Limited.

Nkomo, whose organisation represents small scale miners, pleaded not guilty as he was remanded out of custody to October 14.

Blessing Gundani, prosecuting, told Gwanda magistrate Sheila Nazombe that Nkomo – of Bunny’s Luck Mine in West Nicholson – was visited by detectives investigating alleged illegal gold mining activities on May 27 this year.

“Nkomo was asked to produce the mine certificate and the company registration documents but he failed to do so. Nkomo told the detectives that he was in a partnership with Vice President Mujuru and all the mining certificates and registration documents were in Harare,” the prosecutor said.

Gundai told the court that detectives followed up on Nkomo’s claims but it turned out that he had lied to investigators.

The court was read an affidavit by Mujuru, signed on September 18, in which she denied any business relationship with Nkomo.

“I want to categorically state that I do not have any interest in the so called Matshamahle Mining Pvt Ltd neither do I have any shares in that company,” Mujuru said.

“Such utterances that are made by the accused person are malicious and tend to discredit my reputation and that of my office.”

Nkomo told the court that detectives had fabricated the charges in order to “tarnish the Vice President’s image”.

“I didn’t say that. I never said she was my partner in anyway,” he said in his defence.

“I think the police are interested in making a case out of nothing. Maybe they just want to simply tarnish the relationship between me and the VP or maybe the police intend to tarnish the VP’s image.

“I only said that I did not have the original documents because they are in Harare with the VP’s lawyers. I didn’t know that it was criminal for me to mention that the papers were with the VP’s lawyers.”