HARARE – A Zaka couple has been jailed six months in prison for faking their daughter’s death with the intention of defrauding funeral insurer, Ecosure.
A Masvingo magistrate sentenced the couple to six months imprisonment of which three months were suspended on condition they perform 105 hours of community service.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority, the husband and wife, Rungamirai Machinjike, 27, and Talent Rutindingwe, 33, from Chief Nhema’s area in Zaka were sentenced after a full trial at the Masvingo Magistrates Court.
Machinjike, said the NPA, registered for Ecosure funeral cover and added Rutindingwe, their daughter and their niece as dependants.
During the period extending from November 2023 to December 2023, the couple misrepresented to Ecosure that their daughter had died in November 2023.
In an effort to substantiate their claim, Rutindingwe fraudulently obtained a death confirmation letter from the headman and identity documents of her witnesses which she gave to her husband to go and process the claim.
Machinjike went on to complete claim forms and attached the fraudulent documents. He signed on behalf of the witnesses.
The matter came to light when Ecosure instituted preliminary investigations to verify the authenticity of the claim and established that the duo had made a false claim and a police report was made.
