A South African court has ordered the immediate deportation of Bellarmine Mugabe, the son of Zimbabwe’s former longtime leader Robert Mugabe, following his guilty plea to criminal charges this month.
Magistrate Renier Boshoff directed that the 29-year-old be escorted by law enforcement to Johannesburg’s international airport for his return to Zimbabwe on Wednesday.
The younger Mugabe admitted guilt to displaying an item that could reasonably be mistaken for a firearm and to unlawful presence in South Africa. The court imposed financial penalties totaling approximately $36,000, with the alternative being a two-year prison term.
Both Mugabe and his cousin were taken into custody in February, initially facing attempted murder allegations connected to the shooting of a worker at Mugabe’s Johannesburg residence. Authorities have yet to recover the weapon involved in the incident.
Through negotiations with prosecutors, Mugabe accepted responsibility for reduced charges that were separate from the shooting incident.
His relative, Tobias Matonhodze, admitted guilt to attempted murder in the shooting case along with additional charges, receiving a three-year prison sentence. The magistrate determined that Matonhodze would also face deportation to Zimbabwe upon completing his incarceration.
Addressing Mugabe directly, Boshoff stated: “I do not know whether the second accused took the rap for you. Number two pleaded guilty on all these counts… and I can only act on what is before me.”
Bellarmine Mugabe is the youngest offspring of the deceased Zimbabwean president and his second spouse, Grace Mugabe. Robert Mugabe governed Zimbabwe for nearly four decades, earning recognition as one of Africa’s most enduring authoritarian rulers until his overthrow in a military coup during 2017. He passed away in 2019 at age 95.
Various members of the Mugabe family have faced legal troubles through the years.
Grace Mugabe faced accusations of attacking a model with an electrical cord in front of her children at an upscale Johannesburg hotel in 2017. Though initially summoned to court while serving as first lady, she ultimately received diplomatic immunity protection.
