Bulawayo High Court Officials Convicted in US$1,900 Bribery & Fraud Scandal
Two Bulawayo High Court officials, including a senior assessor, have been convicted of fraud and bribery after soliciting money to influence a civil case, resulting in an eight-year sentence for one offender.
Delicious Mathuthu 
Bulawayo - The Tredgold Magistrates' Court has convicted two Bulawayo High Court officials for their involvement in a bribery scandal where they solicited nearly US$2,000 from a litigant to influence a civil matter.
Ceasar Nkomo (63) a senior assessor at the High Court, and Shingirai Mupunga (29) a research assistant, were found guilty of fraud and an alternative charge of bribery following a trial that exposed a web of judicial corruption.
The court heard that between November 2024 and February 2025, the pair targeted Solomon Ndlovu, misrepresenting that they could facilitate the reinstatement of his civil case.
National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) officials provided overwhelming evidence, including mobile money transaction statements and digital communications, to secure the conviction.
"Call records, EcoCash transaction statements, WhatsApp and text messages proved that the first offender introduced the second offender as the 'Registrar' and that the duo solicited and received USD1974," the NPAZ stated.
The money was purportedly intended to cover search fees and serve as an inducement for a presiding Judge.
Magistrates sentenced Nkomo to eight years in prison.
Two years of the sentence were suspended for five years on condition of good behavior, while an additional year was suspended on the condition that he pays restitution to the victim.
He will serve an effective five-year custodial sentence.
Mupunga, however, remains at large after violating his bail conditions.
"The second offender is currently on a warrant of arrest after failing to appear before the court," authorities confirmed.
The NPAZ reaffirmed its zero-tolerance policy toward graft within the legal system, noting that such breaches of duty undermine the integrity of the state.
"Corruption within the justice delivery system is treated with utmost seriousness," the NPAZ said, adding that "the courts will not hesitate to impose custodial sentences where public trust is abused."
The conviction comes amid a broader national effort to clean up the justice delivery system and restore public confidence in Zimbabwe's courts.
