Police detained two Zanu PF land barons on Thursday for allegedly defrauding homebuyers of property worth $1 million at Victoria Ranch in Masvingo. Godhati Dunira, 57, and Ephraim Gwanongodza, 59, face fraud charges for selling residential plots on land allocated to ShinePlus Holdings by the Ministry of Local Government in 2019. Prosecutors say the pair used their company, Rajavik Investments, to survey 50 hectares beginning in 2022, and they collected between $2,000 and $7,500 per stand from desperate buyers. Authorities discovered the scheme in September 2025 after receiving complaints.
Both suspects remained in remand prison while police continued investigating the extent of the land grab. The 2018 Justice Tendai Uchena Commission of Inquiry recommended probing both ShinePlus and Rajavik for selling state land since 2005, but President Mnangagwa took limited action beyond one conviction in Gweru. Officers denied bail applications because evidence suggests the fraud involves substantially more property than initially reported. Dunira and Gwanongodza developed Victoria Ranch as Masvingo's largest modern residential area.
Both suspects remained in remand prison while police continued investigating the extent of the land grab. The 2018 Justice Tendai Uchena Commission of Inquiry recommended probing both ShinePlus and Rajavik for selling state land since 2005, but President Mnangagwa took limited action beyond one conviction in Gweru. Officers denied bail applications because evidence suggests the fraud involves substantially more property than initially reported. Dunira and Gwanongodza developed Victoria Ranch as Masvingo's largest modern residential area.
