A Chinese national, Xu Zhixue, who fled Zimbabwe while facing theft charges, is now accused of orchestrating a smear campaign against his former business associates, targeting a joint mining venture worth millions.

Xu, who worked for Podhill (Private) Limited, allegedly stole nearly US$4,800 from the company’s Standard Chartered Bank account and vanished after being granted temporary release. He’s now accused of fabricating documents claiming Podhill smuggled over 120 kilograms of gold, worth nearly US$10 million, out of Zimbabwe.

The allegations, published in local media, were reportedly based on AI-generated documents and have been dismissed by law enforcement as false. Podhill, a joint venture between Generous Resources (Pvt) Ltd and Milhub (Pvt) Ltd, has suffered reputational and financial harm due to the false claims.

Milhub principal Mohamad Taleb expressed concern over the impact on investor confidence, saying, “It’s heartbreaking to see malicious lies being spread by people who once benefited from this partnership.”

Zimbabwe authorities are working to track Xu’s activities abroad, and he may face further charges related to cyber defamation and dissemination of falsified information .

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