ZANU-PF Calls Mugabe Son’s Arrest a ‘Private Matter’
Zimbabwe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, has distanced itself from the arrest of Bellarmine Chatunga Mugabe, the 28-year-old youngest son of the late former president Robert Mugabe, calling it a “private matter.”
Bellarmine Mugabe was arrested at his Hyde Park home in Johannesburg on Thursday alongside a 33-year-old co-accused. Both face attempted murder charges after a 23-year-old gardener was shot, sustaining critical injuries and police recovered a cartridge at the scene while searching for the firearm. Authorities said the suspects have not cooperated in revealing the firearm’s location.
ZANU-PF spokesperson Farai Marapira emphasized that the party maintains “zero tolerance for impunity” but will await South African authorities’ investigation before commenting further, describing the case as a matter involving a private citizen.
The Mugabe family has a history of legal controversies. Bellarmine’s older brother, Robert Mugabe Jr., was fined last year for marijuana possession, and their mother, Grace Mugabe, was accused in 2017 of assaulting a model in Johannesburg but had diplomatic immunity at the time.