A South African court has ordered the deportation of Bellarmine Chatunga Mugabe, the youngest son of former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, after he was accused of shooting a gardener following a dispute at his family home in Johannesburg.
Mugabe, 28, who has been in custody since February, pleaded guilty to charges including being in South Africa illegally and brandishing a toy gun during a separate incident.
He was charged along with his cousin, Tobias Mugabe Matonhodze, 32, who pleaded guilty to attempted murder and other charges related to the shooting.
The Alexandra Magistrates Court, in a ruling on Wednesday, fined Mugabe 600,000 rand ($36,000) on the two counts, or sentenced him to 24 months in prison in default. Magistrate Rainer Boshoff also ordered their immediate deportation after serving their sentences, directing authorities to transport them to Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport.
Magistrate Boshoff commented, “Mr. Mugabe, you can consider yourself very fortunate that the complainant in your case was not injured,” as he questioned whether Matonhodze had committed “rape” to his cousin in the shooting incident.
Matonhodze, who was sentenced to concurrent prison terms of up to three years, was described as receiving a “compassionate” ruling due to some mitigating factors, including the fact that the gardeners involved had already been compensated. Investigators revealed that Mali was paid 250,000 rand ($15,000) in cash, with an additional 150,000 rand ($9,000) promised.
The gun used in the shooting has not been recovered.
Bellarmine Mugabe, one of two sons of Robert Mugabe and his second wife Grace, is known for his extravagant lifestyle in Johannesburg, where he and his brothers have often been associated with parties and lavish lifestyles.
Robert Mugabe, who ruled Zimbabwe for nearly 40 years, was ousted in a 2017 coup and died in 2019 at the age of 95.