Bellarmine Mugabe pleads guilty to firearm offence and illegal entry

The youngest son of Zimbabwe's late president admitted pointing a gun and immigration violations while his cousin confessed to attempted murder.

Bellarmine Mugabe, the youngest son of late Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe, pleaded guilty on Friday to pointing a firearm at a victim and entering South Africa illegally.¹²³ The 28-year-old appeared at the Alexandra Magistrate's Court alongside his co-accused and cousin, Tobias Matonhodze, 31, who pleaded guilty to attempted murder and related charges.²³

The charges stemmed from two separate incidents in February. Mugabe's plea related to an incident on 11 February at his Hyde Park residence in Johannesburg, where he allegedly pointed what he described as a toy gun at a victim, leading them to believe it was a real firearm.¹ The second incident occurred on 19 February, when a 23-year-old man identified as Sipho Mahlangu, described variously as a gardener or security guard, was shot twice in the back at the same property.¹²³

Matonhodze admitted to shooting Mahlangu and pleaded guilty to attempted murder, defeating the ends of justice, unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, and immigration violations.²³ According to court statements read by advocate Laurence Hodes, Matonhodze confessed to shooting the victim in the back twice.² Initial charges of attempted murder against Mugabe were dropped after Matonhodze admitted responsibility for the shooting.³

Both men have been held in custody since their arrest on 19 February and abandoned their bail applications in March.² Their legal team told the court the men were prepared to return to Zimbabwe at their own expense if they did not receive custodial sentences.³ The National Prosecuting Authority confirmed that Mugabe agreed to have both cases heard together, though they involved separate incidents.³

The case was postponed to 24 April for further investigation, with the weapon used in the shooting still missing.¹