…court orders dental examination to determine age
By Valentine Makufa
A former street kid turned popular airtime vendor in Masvingo town has been convicted of fraud and theft after duping two unsuspecting victims out of over $1,600.
However the court is now faced with a challenge – determining the age of the convicted conman, Ronald Macheme, through a dental examination before sentencing.
Ironically, Macheme’s rise to notoriety as a successful vendor had inspired many young street kids to follow in his footsteps, seeing him as a role model who had seemingly escaped the hardships of street life.
The matter was heard by Masvingo Magistrate Caroline Tafira who convicted Macheme on both counts but is yet to pass the sentenced, pending determination of his age by a dentist since he had no birth certificate of national ID to prove that he was 20 as he claimed.
The court heard that on May 11, Macheme convinced Ecocash agent Nickson Kwirirai to send $1,250 to two different accounts, claiming that the money was urgently needed by a popular businessman, Allan Sibanda.
Kwirirai trusted him because he had occasionally seen him with the businessman. Little did he know that he was being played.
While on the run for the first case, Macheme struck again on May 31, duping cellphone dealer Etienne Makotose out of four cellphones valued at $360.
He promised to deliver the phones to a client who would pay immediately, but never returned with the money. Makotose had trusted him because they had done similar deals in the past.
Both cases were reported to the police who launched a man hunt and investigations led to his arrest in Gutu on July 06.
Only one phone was recovered after Macheme disappeared and the total value stolen was US360, with US$95 recovered.
When brought to court, Macheme confessed to using the trust he had built with the victims to deceive them.
He also told the court that he had spent the money enjoying himself in lodges and hotels among other things.
Precious Takuva prosecuted.
