Police release list of Baba Jukwa suspects
Police in Zimbabwe have released a list of 10 people accused of helping popular but mysterious Facebook blogger Baba Jukwa. Sunday Mail editor Edmund Kudzayi and his brother Phillip are already in police custody and awaiting trial.
Kudzayi (28) was arrested last week and charged with attempting to subvert a constitutionally elected government or, alternatively, attempting to commit an act of insurgency, banditry, sabotage or terrorism using the Baba Jukwa Facebook page.
According to new reports, police are said to be looking for the publishers of the Zimbabwean newspaper Wilf and Trish Mbanga, South Africa based journalists Mxolisi Ncube and Mkhululi Chimoio, both correspondents for the paper.
Also wanted are Walter Shoko, said to be a software and systems engineer based in the UK, Simon Chifamba, a computer programmer in the UK, George Chirakasha, said to be based in the UK, as well as Anomie Drew, Piniel Nhokodzo, Romeo Musemburi and Sarudzai Florence.
“All the accused persons are administrators to [email protected] and Baba Jukwa Facebook page,” the ZRP said in a statement.
“This is the reason why the Facebook page Baba Jukwa is still very active. The accused persons are based in various global locations and network to post subversive articles on this page,” the statement read.
Ncube and Chimoio were the first to be accused by the state media of being Baba Jukwa. The two however denied any involvement and instead hired Harare lawyer Obert Gutu to file lawsuits against the publications who made the claims.
After a serialization by the state media of what was meant to be hacked Baba Jukwa emails it was then that Edmund Kudzayi’s attempt to help the army track down the mystery blogger backfired and he was instead arrested. At least that is what he has claimed in his defence outline.
Ironically the Sunday Mail newspaper edited by Kudzayi was one of those who published the leaked Baba Jukwa emails, claiming then that they had evidence linking journalists Mxolisi Ncube and Mkhululi Chimoio to the Baba Jukwa Facebook page.
