CHATUNGA Bellarmine Mugabe, the youngest son of the late former Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe, was arrested Thursday morning after allegedly shooting a 23-year-old gardener at his luxury residence in Hyde Park, one of Johannesburg’s most upscale suburbs.
South African Police Service spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi confirmed that two suspects – Mugabe and a companion – were taken into custody at the property and are likely to face charges of attempted murder.
Police were alerted to the incident after private security flagged them down and reported that a shooting had taken place on the property. The gardener was shot during an altercation and is currently in critical condition. Medical personnel attended to the victim at the scene.
Early information from the scene suggests an alleged labour dispute between the gardener and one of the suspects led to the violent exchange. Authorities said the firearm used in the shooting had not yet been recovered, though police found a cartridge at the scene as investigations continue.
Initial reports stated that Mugabe had barricaded himself in his room, but Nevhuhulwi confirmed he and his companion were cooperating with authorities.
The arrest marks the latest in a series of legal troubles for the younger Mugabe. In mid-2025, Chatunga was arrested on multiple assault charges following a violent incident at a mining site in Mazowe, Zimbabwe, where a security guard was left critically injured with broken limbs. He also faced charges of disorderly conduct and possession of a prohibited knife after an altercation with police officers at a roadblock near Beitbridge in August 2024.
Police in Gauteng said investigations into Thursday’s shooting are ongoing. No court date has yet been announced.
Robert Mugabe, who ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years before being ousted in a military coup in 2017, died in September 2019 at the age of 95.
