By Judith Nyuke
The trial over a $29 million land dispute in Spitzkop continued Thursday at the Harare Magistrates’ Court, where a lawyer who once handled the case testified that one of the two brothers-in-law who is the accused person in the matter reportedly took the case file from him, ending his involvement.
This follows after the brothers, Tendai Jemwa and Thomas Masango being legally represented by Tsivama at that time, had obtained a High Court order for Charles Zinto, the former owner of the land, to transfer Stand 58 Spitzkop, Snake Park, Harare to Tenjem Consultants.
However, they could not enforce it as Zinto had never formally taken ownership from the previous, now deceased owner, Mr. Chamba.
The Court heard that the lawyer, Jingini Raphael Tsivama, at that time advised both Jemwa and Masango to investigate Chamba’s estate and its registration status to facilitate the initial transfer from his estate to Zinto.
Before Tsivama could finalize the case with the two brothers-in-law, Jemwa reportedly collected the file.
Masango later discovered that Jemwa had fraudulently altered the documents.
The matter was remanded to 17 September 2025 for trial continuation.
The State, represented by Ephraim Zinyandu, alleges that in 2007, Masango and Jemwa entered into verbal business ventures and acquired several properties, including 58 Spitzkop, Snake Park, Harare.
Both Masango and Jemwa reportedly purchased the property from Zinto for $29 million. Zinto claimed to have bought the land from Jeremiah and was awaiting the title deed transfer, which was referenced on title deed number 10146/89.
By the time the parties bought the property from Zinto, it had not yet been transferred into Zinto’s name and it was still holding Chamba’s title deed, number 10146/89.
During the transaction Zinto gave both parties his own agreement of sale together with the one he entered with Chamba.
Both parties bought the property with the intention to register it into Ten Jem Consultants (Pvt) Ltd being a company owned by Jemwa. To that extent Masango agreed with Jemwa that before, upon or immediately after the transfer of the property is made into Ten Jem Consultants (Pvt) Ltd, he was going to be made 50 percent shareholder and Director of Ten Jem Consultants (Pvt) Ltd in ratification of their earlier agreement.
The State’s case is that in 2012, Jemwa allegedly defrauded Masango of his ownership by secretly collecting the file of transfer documents from their lawyer.
This happened before the property was officially transferred or before they could finalize the 50/50 shareholding in their company, Ten Jem Consultants.
