NEGOTIATIONS on plea bargain between Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau’s (PCCB) former Director of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Kulthum Mansoor and Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) have officially flopped.
This was revealed by defence counsel Elia Mwingira at Kisutu Resident Magistrates’ Court in Dar es Salaam yesterday when the 1.4bn/- economic and money laundering trial against the former PCCB director came up for mention.
The PCCB director had written to the DPP requesting to end the trial.But her defence counsel informed the court that they had failed to reach an agreement with the DPP on the matter.
He asked Senior Resident Magistrate Godfrey Isaya to order the prosecution to expedite investigation, arguing that his client had been remanded for a long time.
Earlier, Senior State Attorney Wankyo Simon informed the court that the prosecution was still investigating the matter and asked for another mention date, promising to consult with investigators to speed up investigation. Magistrate Isaya adjourned the trial until January 20, 2020 for another mention.
The defence counsel on October 2, 2019 informed the court in terms of section 194A(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) that the accused had written to the DPP, expressing her intention to enter into the agreement to end the trial.
In the case, the accused faces eight counts of forgery, obtaining money by false pretences and money laundering amounting to 1,477,243,000/-.
The offences were allegedly committed between January 2012 and May 2017 in Dar es Salaam. The prosecution alleges that between January 2013 and May 2018 at PCCB headquarters in Ilala District, knowingly and with intent to deceive, the accused forged a letter of offer, purporting to show that it was issued by Bagamoyo District Council.
It is alleged further that between January 2012 and May 2017 at Upanga in Ilala District, being PCCB director, by false pretences and with intent to defraud, the accused obtained 32.2m/- from different employees— Alex Mavika, Wakati Katondo, Gogo Migutah, Ekwabi Majungu, John Sangwa and Rose Shingela.
The amount, the prosecution claims, was payment for the sale of plots at Ukuni Village in Coast Region’s Bagamoyo District, with the accused pretending to own the plots.
On money laundering, the prosecution charges that the accused between January 2013 and May 2017 at Upanga in Ilala District acquired 1,477,243,000/- knowing or ought to have known that the money receipt was a proceed of a predicate offence of forgery.
