A Harare woman lost her fraud case against two businessmen after a court cleared them of all charges. Elizabeth Parirenyatwa had accused Brian Murphy and Adam Wood of lying about when Brian James Rhodes died. She claimed they changed his death date from 2006 to 2012 on official company papers. The magistrate found both men not guilty after a tough six-week trial.
Parirenyatwa says she handles the estate of Rhodes who passed away back in 2006. She got kicked out of a Mutare Road property that belongs to Karoi Properties before filing the criminal charges. The court heard five witnesses testify during the long legal battle. Magistrate Lisa Mutendereki said the state never proved the men committed fraud.
Defense lawyers turned the tables and called Parirenyatwa a fake and criminal. They said she forged legal documents that gave her power over the estate. The lawyers revealed that Rhodes' actual children never attended the meeting where Parirenyatwa became executor. His widow Elizabeth never listed Karoi Properties as something her husband owned when she made his asset list.
The defense showed that all the rightful heirs already received their money from the estate. Previous court cases had already decided that Phoenix Trust owned the company shares and the estate had nothing left. The magistrate ruled the state rushed their investigation and could not connect either man to filing the disputed paperwork.
Parirenyatwa says she handles the estate of Rhodes who passed away back in 2006. She got kicked out of a Mutare Road property that belongs to Karoi Properties before filing the criminal charges. The court heard five witnesses testify during the long legal battle. Magistrate Lisa Mutendereki said the state never proved the men committed fraud.
Defense lawyers turned the tables and called Parirenyatwa a fake and criminal. They said she forged legal documents that gave her power over the estate. The lawyers revealed that Rhodes' actual children never attended the meeting where Parirenyatwa became executor. His widow Elizabeth never listed Karoi Properties as something her husband owned when she made his asset list.
The defense showed that all the rightful heirs already received their money from the estate. Previous court cases had already decided that Phoenix Trust owned the company shares and the estate had nothing left. The magistrate ruled the state rushed their investigation and could not connect either man to filing the disputed paperwork.
