BEITBRIDGE – Bellarmine Chatunga Mugabe, the son of the late Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, is set to return to court on 16 September, after he was remanded out of custody for the allegedly assaulting a police officer.
Mugabe, who was represented by Muchiwande Sithole of F Chauke and Associates, briefly appeared before Beitbridge resident magistrate, Takudzwa Gwazemba who did not ask him to plead to the charges.
Allegations are that the son of the former president, who was traveling to a wedding in Harare assaulted a police officer who he accused of delaying proceedings at a roadblock in Beitbridge.
According to initial reports, Chatunga arrived at the roadblock early hours of Saturday morning and became increasingly impatient when police requested for vehicle documents. He was reportedly being chauffeured by a Chinese driver.
“He started shouting at the police saying you are delaying us, do you know who I am? He then angrily and violently grabbed a Support Unit officer by the collar and tore off his shirt buttons in the process,” a source was quoted saying.
The son of the former President is said to have produced a knife during the encounter.
Although he was eventually subdued, the officer that he reportedly assaulted told the court through his legal representatives that he was experiencing back pains from the assault by Chatunga.
He has degrees of violence like his father and mother