HARARE – A Zimbabwean man once jailed for tax fraud in the United States was arrested at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport on September 24 accused of fraudulently transferring ownership of a prime property to his name.
On Friday, Elijah Meskano, 52, appeared before Harare magistrate Marewanazvo Gofa on fraud charges and was granted US$200 bail.
He was arrested while allegedly attempting to flee the country, prosecutors said.
Maria Mafunga, 41, of Gletwyn, and a co-director of Deluxe International School in Ruwa accuses Meskano of illegally transferring ownership of her Damofalls stand and a triple-storey mansion she built over several years.
The National Prosecuting Authority says Mafunga legally purchased part of stand 829, measuring 2,916 square metres, in February 2017 from Brighton Ushendibaba, who had originally acquired the land from Divine Homes land developers.
“Over time, she constructed a luxury home valued at US$580,000, paying all permits and costs under the developer’s account,” the NPA said.
That same year, Meskano purchased the remaining three subdivisions of the original property, measuring 6,084 square metres. Prosecutors allege that between 2017 and 2022, Mafunga peacefully developed her portion without dispute.
But in August this year, Meskano is said to have fraudulently altered ownership records, changing registration from Ross Farm, the original holder of the land, to himself and his wife, Rudo, without Mafunga’s knowledge or consent.
The fraud only came to light in September when Mafunga received Harare City Council bills reflecting Elijah and Rudo Meskano as the registered owners of the property. Alarmed, she reported the matter to police.
Authorities then moved quickly after receiving information that Meskano was preparing to leave Zimbabwe. He was intercepted at the airport and taken into custody.
This is not the first time Meskano has faced fraud charges. In 2013, while living in Texas, he pleaded guilty in a Dallas federal court to conspiracy to steal public funds in connection with a large-scale tax refund fraud scheme.
Court records from the U.S. show that Meskano and his roommate, Cephas Msipa, electronically filed 192 fraudulent tax returns between 2011 and 2012, using stolen identities and false income data.
They directed the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to deposit refunds into multiple bank accounts they had opened under false names.
Meskano was sentenced to 45 months in federal prison and ordered to repay about US$52,000, while his co-conspirator was ordered to pay more than US$118,000.
The U.S. Attorney at the time, Sarah R. Saldaña, described the scam as “a deliberate theft of taxpayer money.” – ZimLive
