Former Miss Princess Zimbabwe model Mercy Mushaninga who was last week convicted of duping five models of their money totaling US$10 000 in a botched Dubai modeling event was sentenced to 28 months imprisonment by a Harare magistrate.
Mushaninga (47) will however not spend any prison time but will commit 350 hours of community service.
Magistrate Yeukai Dzuda suspended six months on condition of good behaviour and another 12 months on condition that she restitutes complainants their funds by December 10 and the remaining 10 months she will be performing community service at VID Belvedere.
Two of the models were stranded in Dubai and only received assistance from the Zimbabwean embassy.
The court heard that sometime in August 2022, Mushaninga invited models to participate in the 6th Miss Universal VIP World 2022 and the 16th Little Miss Universe Beauty Pageant event in Dubai scheduled for October 25 to 30, 2022.
Mushaninga asked models to pay for their own air ticket fees, visa fees and accommodation through her.
The models paid varying amounts of up to US$2900 totalling US$10 200.
The complainants only discovered that they had been duped on October 24 on the scheduled date of travel.
They made a police report leading to her arrest.
Source Nehanda Radios
