A 28-year-old man from Harare entered a guilty plea and was fined US$300 for forging his Zimsec Advanced Level qualifications in order to apply for and successfully complete a Diploma in Business Administration program in Poland.
On his own plea, Tafadzwa Nyakatondo was found guilty on Monday by Harare provincial magistrate Feresi Chakanyuka.
Judge Chakanyuka found that he was a first-time offender and that he had not abused the court’s time in finding him guilty.
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Nyakatondo was first given a sentence of six months in jail, with an additional two months suspended if he does not commit the same crime within five years, and an additional four months to pay a $300 fine.
The court heard that Nyakatondo’s forged A’ Level certificate helped him to register for a Diploma in Business Administration in Poland which he had already acquired.
Nyakatondo was arrested earlier this month after a copy of his fraudulent Advanced Level certificate was found in suspected serial fraudster Molyn Mugodi’s computer.
The serial fraudster Mugodi is currently out on bail and is suspected to have been running an operation where she forged birth certificates and academic certificates.
The court heard that sometime around 2021 and 2022, Nyakatondo with the intention of securing a place to study in Poland approached Admire Manyemba who is an Agent of International Institutions and submitted his application.
Nyakatondo’s highest qualification at that moment was Ordinary Level and upon realizing that the prospects of him securing a place to study in Poland were very slim, he then agreed to forge a ZIMSEC Advanced Level certificate to enhance his prospects.
Nyakatondo was told to pay US$350 by Manyemba for him to facilitate the creation of a fake ZIMSEC Advanced Level certificate .
The court heard that Manyemba subsequently approached Mugodi and paid her US$150 for her to doctor a fake Advanced Level Certificate.
After receiving US$150 from Manyemba, Mugodi went on and crafted a fake ZIMSEC Advanced Level certificate in which Nyakatondo was purported to have sat for ZIMSEC November 2020.
The certificate misrepresented that Nyakatondo managed to pass Accounting, Business Studies and Economics with B. C and B grades respectively, the court heard.
After obtaining the forged certificate Nyatondo then filed an application to study at the Poland International University.
Nyakatondo left Zimbabwe in 2021, completed his studies in September 2022 and returned home.
