A MAN who allegedly sold his son's property at Dandaro Village in Harare for US$250 000 without authorisation has been dragged to court where he is facing a fraud charge.
The property was registered under a company in which the son was listed as the sole shareholder.
Lakeland Ventures (Pvt) Ltd, represented by its director Gregory Graham Hall, is the complainant in the case against Graham Garnet Metcalf Hall (86) of Borrowdale Brooke.
The senior Hall appeared before Harare regional magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa this week who remanded him out of custody to July 27, on free bail.
Graham senior divorced Gregory's mother, Noreece Lesley Hall, and the son was staying with his mother.
Prosecutor Mr Anesu Chirenje alleged that on January 7, 1998, Lakeland Ventures, through its then director Noreece Lesley, completed a payment of $1 million to Wenham Investments for the purchase of the property at Dandaro Village.
On May 11, 2005, Graham Hall misrepresented that he bought Dandaro Village from Wenham Investments and fraudulently caused the Registrar of Companies and Deeds to act upon that misrepresentation and transferred the property into his name under Deed number 2675/2005 well knowing that the property was bought by Lakeland Ventures.
On March 18, 2008, Gregory and Lesley Hall were appointed directors of Lakeland Venture.
On the same day, Lesley was also appointed secretary of Lakeland Ventures.
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The court heard, Graham Snr was dismissed from the directorship of Lakeland Ventures (Pvt) Ltd through a resolution of an annual general meeting held on May 18, 2008 and he never owned any shares in the company from that date.
Noreece died on November 3, 2010 while she was still a director, but no longer owned any shares in the company as she had transferred all of them to her son, Gregory.
It is alleged that sometime in 2016, Graham Snr sold Dandaro Village to Stephen Heathcote Hacker for US$250 000 and payment was made into Wintertons Legal Practitioners' trust account.
On January 23, 2017, he also caused the Registrar of Deeds to transfer Dandaro Village from his name into Stephen Heathcote Hacker's name under Deed number 346/2017.
Gregory discovered the offence and reported the matter to the police and investigations carried out led to the arrest of his father.
