HARARE — Harare lawyer Concellia Maheya has been convicted of theft of trust property and remanded in custody pending her pre-sentencing hearing, following a fraudulent US$30,000 real estate transaction.
Maheya, formerly employed by Maseko Law Chambers, was found guilty on Friday by Harare magistrate Lisa Mutendereki following a full trial. Prosecutors proved that she accepted US$30,000 in trust from a buyer using forged title deeds, despite the property having been sold to a different party three years earlier.
According to state pros
ecutor Takudzwa Jambawo, the incident began in October 2021 when the complainant, Mercy Kabvara, sought to purchase property. An estate agent, Templeton P. Chadyiwa, directed Kabvara to a 1,265-square-meter stand in Bluffhill Township and subsequently introduced her to Maheya.
Maheya claimed to be acting on behalf of the property's purported owner, Zvatinowona Tsitsi Kujeke. The court heard that Maheya presented a Deed of Transfer—which the State later proved was fake—and signed an agreement of sale on behalf of the seller on Oct. 29, 2021.
Kabvara handed over US$30,000 in cash for Maheya to hold in trust pending the lawful transfer of ownership, alongside an additional US$500 for conveyancing fees.
When Maheya failed to produce the title deeds in the following weeks, Kabvara visited the Deeds Office to verify the documents. Officials informed her that the deed she had been shown was forged and that the office had confiscated the fraudulent paperwork to destroy it.
Further investigations through the City of Harare revealed the Bluffhill stand had actually been sold by Kujeke to a man named Collen Kapende in June 2018.
In December 2022, Maheya attempted to compensate Kabvara by offering her a house in Hatfield Estate. However, the agreement collapsed because the property was under the administration of the Master of the High Court, and Maheya lacked the legal consent required under the Administration of Estates Act to sell it.
Following the failed compensation attempt, Maheya signed an acknowledgment of debt for the US$30,000 on Feb. 23, 2023.
Maheya is scheduled to return to court on April 7 for sentencing. - Zimbo LIVE Harare
