Ex-Acacia boss charged with economic sabotage
What you need to know:
- Mr Deo Mwanyika, Mr Lugengo and four companies faces 39 counts, including counterfeiting, economic sabotage and conspiracy to evade payment of government tax. They were brought before Kisutu magistrate court.
Dar es Salaam. The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) has arraigned two officials including former Acacia vice president of corporate affairs Deo Mwanyika on 39 counts, including counterfeiting, economic sabotage and conspiracy to evade payment of government tax.
Mr Mwanyika, 56, together with the Bulyanhulu Gold Mine Relations Manager, Mr Alex Lugendo, 41, and four companies, are facing the charges in connection with economic sabotage case number 31/2018.
The companies are: Pangea Minerals Limited, North Mara Gold Mine Limited, Exploration Minieres Du Nord LTEE and Bulyanhulu Gold Mine Ltd.
Mwanyika, Lugendo and the four companies face charges before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate Kelvin Mhina.
Out of the 39 counts, 17 are related to money laundering, 8 on tax evasion, 7 on counterfeiting, 3 on organised crime while others are submitting fake documents and bribery.
Reading the charges, state attorneys Faraja Nchimbi, Shadrack Kimaro and Jacqueline Nyantole told the court that Mr Mwanyika and Mr Lugendo are also charged with offering a Sh718 million bribe to the head of criminal investigations in Shinyanga, Mr Hussein Kashindye.
In the first count of conspiracy which Mr Mwanyika and Mr Lugendo are facing, it was alleged that on different occasions on April 11 2008 and June 30 2017, in various locations in Dar es Salaam, Kahama, Tarime and Biharamulo and in other locations in Johannesburg, South Africa, Toronto in Canada, in the Barbados Islands in the United Kingdom, conspired to evade tax.
Mr Nchimbi said that in the second count, Mr Mwanyika and Mr Lugendo committed the offence at the mentioned locations.
In the third count, the duo are alleged, on April 11 2008 and May 29 2008 in the mentioned locations that they forged a contract, trying to show that Pangea Mine accepted to borrow a loan worth $90 million from Barrick International Bank Corp, while knowing that it was an offense to do so.
In the fourth count, which entails tax evasion facing the first suspect to the fifth, it was alleged that between May 16, 2008 and December 31, 2008 in the mentioned locations, intentionally fabricated to the Commissioner of the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) and evaded tax worth $9 million which should have been paid to TRA.
In the fifth count, Mr Mwanyika and Mr Lugendo are alleged to have carried out money laundering, that on May 16 2008 and May 25 2008, in the mentioned locations, they solicited to facilitate Pangea Mine, Exploration Du Nord Ltee and obtained $9,309,600 which entails forging and evading tax.
The charges come one day after Mr Mwanyika was arrested in Dar es Salaam by PCCB officials.
Acacia was quick to notify its shareholders about the incident yesterday.
The company posted on its website that it was aware of the detaining by the PCCB of Mr Mwanyika and Mr Lugendo.
This, Acacia, said, was happening at a time when its (Acacia’s) 19-month dispute with the government of Tanzania was still unresolved.
