Chatunga Mugabe faces 15-year prison sentence in South Africa, BUT Grace Mugabe wants him back home for good

JOHANNESBURG — The youngest son of the late Zimbabwean strongman Robert Mugabe, Bellarmine Chatunga Mugabe, is currently languishing in a South African prison cell, facing a legal storm that could see him behind bars for up to 15 years. The 29-year-old, known more for his flamboyant lifestyle and champagne-drenched social media posts than for any political ambition, now finds himself at the centre of a violent attempted murder case that has laid bare the diminishing protection of the Mugabe name beyond Zimbabwe’s borders.

The drama unfolded in the leafy, high-security suburb of Hyde Park, Johannesburg, where the Mugabe family maintains a lavish residence. On a Thursday evening that began like any other, an altercation between Chatunga and an employee at the home took a bloody turn. According to South African Police Service (SAPS) reports, a 23-year-old man, identified as a gardener at the property, was shot in the back. The victim was rushed to a local hospital in a critical condition, while Chatunga and a co-accused, 33-year-old Tobias Mugabe Matonhodze, were swiftly taken into custody.

The charges read out in the Alexandra Magistrates Court on Monday, February 23, 2026, were sobering. Prosecutors have charged the pair with attempted murder, illegal possession of a firearm, and defeating the ends of justice. The latter charge is particularly telling; investigators reveal that the weapon used in the shooting has mysteriously vanished from the scene, leading to suspicions of a deliberate attempt to conceal evidence. Adding to his mounting woes, Chatunga is also facing allegations of being an illegal immigrant, with authorities questioning the validity of his stay in the Republic.

Attempted murder in South Africa, classified under the Criminal Law Amendment Act, typically carries a minimum sentence of 15 years for first-time offenders (Schedule 2, Part II). However, courts often impose 5 to 10 years, or up to 15-30 years, based on "substantial and compelling circumstances" and case severity.

Key Sentencing Guidelines (South Africa):

• Minimum Sentence: 15 years for first-time offenders (as of August 2022).
• Alternative Minimums: 5-10 years may be applied depending on specific case details, such as mitigating factors.
• Second/Third Offenders: 7 years for a second offense, and 10+ years for subsequent offenses.
• Mandatory Minimums Departure: Courts can impose lesser sentences if "substantial and compelling circumstances" exist, such as youth, age, or specific mitigating evidence.
• Sentence Factors: Sentences are influenced by factors like the use of firearms, the brutality of the act, and the accused's prior convictions.

While Chatunga remains remanded in custody until at least March 3, 2026, for a formal bail application, the real story is playing out across the Limpopo River in Harare. Sources close to the former First Family reveal that Grace Mugabe, the widow of the late President, is in a state of "panic mode." She is reportedly desperate to bring her youngest son back to Zimbabwe for good, convinced that his continued presence in South Africa is a recipe for further disaster.

"She knows that he is going to cause more problems if he remains in South Africa," a source close to the family stated. The concern is not merely for his legal safety, but for the preservation of what remains of the Mugabe reputation. In South Africa, Chatunga is treated as any other suspect; in Zimbabwe, however, he remains the son of the "founding father," shielded by a political machinery that still remembers his father’s 37-year rule.

The irony of the situation is not lost on political observers. While Grace Mugabe wants to fly to her son's side, she is effectively a fugitive in South Africa. An outstanding warrant for her arrest remains active, stemming from the infamous 2017 incident where she allegedly assaulted young model Gabriella Engels with an extension cord in a Sandton hotel. Despite her previous claims of diplomatic immunity, South African courts have since stripped her of that protection, meaning the moment she touches down at OR Tambo International Airport, she would likely be handcuffed.

The contrast between her status in Pretoria and Harare could not be more stark. In a surprising turn of events, the long-standing animosity between the Mugabes and the man who ousted them, President Emmerson Mnangagwa, appears to have evaporated. In a televised interview with veteran journalist Rueben Barwe in December last year, Mnangagwa made a revelation that stunned the nation. He disclosed that he and Grace Mugabe are now in "good books," describing their relationship as having reconciled "as father and son" in the spirit of his bond with the late Robert Mugabe.

"When Grace encounters any problems, she phones me and I solve her problems," Mnangagwa told Barwe during the ZBC broadcast.

This high-level protection is exactly what Grace Mugabe craves for her son. If the Hyde Park shooting had occurred in Harare or a suburb like Borrowdale, the Mugabe influence—now bolstered by a direct line to the Presidency—would likely have seen the case quietly "disappear" before it ever reached a courtroom. In Zimbabwe, the law often bends to the will of the powerful; in South Africa’s more independent judiciary, the Mugabe name carries no such weight.

This is not Chatunga’s first brush with the law. His history of "disorderly conduct" has become a recurring headache for his mother. In August 2024, he was arrested at a police checkpoint along the Beitbridge-Harare highway. During that incident, he was reportedly found in possession of illegal drugs, including cannabis and cocaine. Even more recently, in 2025, he was linked to a violent altercation at a gold mining concession, further cementing his reputation as a "problem child" of the Zimbabwean elite.

His older brother, Robert Mugabe Jr., has fared little better. In 2024, Robert Jr. was fined $300 after admitting to possession of marijuana in Zimbabwe. He, too, has a string of arrests in South Africa for assault and malicious damage to property, painting a picture of a family whose younger generation has struggled to adapt to life without the absolute power their father once wielded.

Reports from inside the prison suggest that the transition from the high life to a concrete cell has been traumatic for Chatunga. During one court appearance, he reportedly collapsed, shouting to guards, "Don't embarrass me, I'm Mugabe's son." It was a poignant reminder of a young man still clinging to a status that the South African legal system no longer recognises.

For Grace Mugabe, the goal is clear: get Chatunga home. She believes that within the borders of Zimbabwe, she can manage his behaviour and, more importantly, manage the consequences. With President Mnangagwa apparently ready to "solve her problems" with a single phone call, the safety of Harare is a far more attractive prospect than the cold reality of a South African prison sentence.

However, the path home is fraught with difficulty. The South African National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is under immense public pressure to show that no one is above the law, especially given the high-profile nature of the suspect. With a gardener shot in the back and a missing firearm yet to be recovered, the "Mugabe magic" that once opened doors across the continent appears to have finally run out of steam in the South.

As the March 3 bail hearing approaches, the former First Lady remains trapped in her Harare mansion, unable to support her son in person and unable to influence a legal process that treats her as a wanted woman. The era of the Mugabes as untouchable royalty is over, and for Chatunga, the price of that fallen crown may well be measured in years behind a South African prison gate.

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