Addmore Nhekairo was the Harare City Council Director of Housing and Community Services when he was arrested in 2020 on accusations of illegal allocation of stands. #CouncilCrimes pic.twitter.com/V1ikwe5aaQ
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
He was arrested together with his predecessor& then Director Human& Capital Resources Matthew Marara. The regional magistrate found that there were significant risks that Marara and co-accused Aaron Tayerera would abscond& that Nhekairo could interfere with a crucial witnesses.
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Marara (49) was facing a fraud charge with Aaron Tayerera (48), who was the acting chief clerical officer, while Nhekairo (54) was facing a charge of criminal abuse of office.
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Nhekairo and Edgar Dzehonye were however cleared of charges of unprocedurally allocating stands to police officers and court officials in a bid to bribe them from investigating a fraud case against other council officials. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
The two were acquitted and discharged at the close of the State case after Harare regional magistrate Mrs Feresi Chakanyuka ruled that there was nothing amiss in their conduct when they executed their duties. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
In March 2021 Nhekairo was arrested on fresh charges of parcelling out residential stands on land reserved for recreational purposes and was denied bail and remanded to March 23. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Nhekairo was facing two fresh counts of criminal abuse of office when he appeared before magistrate Stanford Mambanje.
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Mambanje ruled that the council executive was likely to interfere with investigations if released on bail. #CouncilCrimes
The court heard that Nhekairo contrary to his duties, contacted council’s chief environmental health officer John Manyara in July 2018 advising him that there were vacant stands which had been subdivided on stand number 2603 Mabelreign , Harare. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
He subsequently invited Manyara for interviews and advised him to make a payment of 50% of intrinsic value, which the latter paid on July 12 before he registered on the city’s housing waiting list. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
According to the State’s case the stand sold to Manyara was reserved for recreational purposes.
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
The State alleges that in August that same year, Nhekairo issued an offer letter to Manyara for stand number 3619 Mabelreign being a subdivision of stand number 2603.#CouncilCrimes
Using the same modus operandi, Nhekairo in September 2018 allegedly offered the remainder of the stand to Tinashe Douglas Chirima, who was director for Cape North Investments. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Chirima allegedly paid $34 500 for the property. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Nhekairo was also accused of allocating 18 residential stands to his mother-in-law and other relatives without council approval.#CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
This was in contravention of municipal procedures and prejudicing Marondera municipality of $33 650 as the residential stands were not paid for by the beneficiaries. #CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
Nhekairo was also accused of concealing from his principal a personal interest in the transaction, apart from corruptly selling 10 hectares of gum poles from the local authority’s Hunyani Farm to a private company in 2012.#CouncilCrimes
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024
He was further accused of owning several properties, but investigations later showed the stand numbers presented to the anti-graft body as having been corruptly acquired by the accused were, in fact, non-existent. #CouncilCrimes pic.twitter.com/A745aiyCZR
— OpenCouncilHRE (@OpenCouncilHRE) March 15, 2024