JOHANNESBURG,
South
Africa
–
Prosecutors
and
defence
lawyers
for
Bellarmine
Chatunga
Mugabe
say
they
are
“98
percent”
close
to
finalising
a
plea
deal
after
he
was
charged
with
attempted
murder,
defeating
the
ends
of
justice,
illegal
possession
of
a
firearm
and
overstaying
his
visa.
The
development
emerged
at
the
Alexandra
Magistrates
Court
in
Johannesburg
on
Tuesday,
where
the
28-year-old
appeared
alongside
his
co-accused,
Tobias
Matonhodze.
The
pair
have
abandoned
their
bail
application
and
are
seeking
to
avoid
a
lengthy
trial
by
pleading
guilty
to
some
of
the
charges
in
exchange
for
reduced
sentences.
Negotiations
with
the
prosecution
are
expected
to
culminate
in
agreed
prison
terms,
which
must
be
presented
before
a
magistrate
with
the
authority
to
either
endorse
or
reject
the
plea
agreement.
Details
of
the
agreement
are
expected
to
be
revealed
when
the
two
men
return
to
court
on
March
24.
Chatunga
Mugabe
and
his
co-accused
Tobias
Matonhodze
in
the
dock
at
the
Alexandra
Magistrates
Court
on
March
17,
2026
Mugabe
and
Matonhodze
were
arrested
on
February
19
in
the
affluent
suburb
of
West
Park,
north
of
Johannesburg,
after
a
gardener
at
the
property
was
shot
following
what
prosecutors
described
as
a
dispute.
Police
say
the
gardener
had
not
reported
for
work
for
several
weeks,
although
it
remains
unclear
whether
this
was
linked
to
the
shooting.
Authorities
have
also
been
unable
to
establish
who
fired
the
shot,
and
the
firearm
used
has
not
been
recovered.
The
victim
of
the
shooting
is
expected
to
make
a
full
recovery.
Mugabe
is
the
youngest
child
of
the
late
former
president
and
his
second
wife,
Grace
Mugabe.
The
former
leader
died
in
Singapore
in
2019
after
ruling
Zimbabwe
for
37
years
before
being
removed
from
power
in
the
2017
Zimbabwe
military
coup.
The
Mugabe
family
has
faced
a
series
of
legal
troubles
over
the
years.
Bellarmine’s
older
brother,
Robert
Mugabe
Jr,
was
fined
$300
last
year
after
admitting
to
possession
of
cannabis
in
Harare.
Grace
Mugabe
was
also
accused
of
assaulting
a
model
with
an
electrical
cord
at
a
Johannesburg
hotel
in
2017.
She
was
initially
ordered
to
appear
in
court
but
was
later
granted
diplomatic
immunity.
Bellarmine
himself
has
twice
been
arrested
in
Zimbabwe
—
once
for
aggressive
conduct
at
a
police
roadblock
near
Beitbridge,
and
in
a
separate
case
for
allegedly
taking
part
in
a
violent
assault
on
gold
prospectors
who
had
encroached
on
the
family’s
farm
in
Mazowe.
Both
matters
remain
pending.