Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Zimbabwe’s first lady, Grace Mugabe
Zimbabwe’s first lady, Grace Mugabe, is due in court in South Africa following allegations of an assault, South Africa’s police minister says.
She has “handed herself over to the police” but is not under arrest, Fikile Mbalula said.
Gabriella Engels, 20, has accused Mrs Mugabe of hitting her on the head
South African model Gabriella Engels, 20, has accused Mrs Mugabe of hitting her on the head with an extension cord during a confrontation at a hotel.
She released an image of a face injury online. Mrs Mugabe has not commented.
Ms Engels accused Mrs Mugabe, 52, of hitting her after finding her with her two sons in a hotel room in Sandton, a plush suburb north of Johannesburg, the BBC’s Pumza Fihlani reports.
The attack is said to have happened on Sunday evening.
What does Engels say?
In a phone interview for South Africa’s News24 news site, she said she and a friend had been visiting the sons, Robert and Chatunga, at the Capital 20 West Hotel.
A bodyguard asked her and her friend to wait in a separate room, after which the assault occurred, she said.
“When Grace entered I had no idea who she was,” she told News24.
“She walked in with an extension cord and just started beating me with it. She flipped and just kept beating me with the plug. Over and over. I had no idea what was going on. I was surprised… I needed to crawl out of the room before I could run away.
“Her ten bodyguards just stood there watching, no-one did anything, no-one tried to help me.”
“There was blood everywhere,” she added. “Over my arms, in my hair, everywhere.”
What do the police say?
In a statement, they confirmed that on Monday an unnamed 20-year-old South African woman had registered a “case of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm”.
She was “allegedly assaulted by a prominent woman at a hotel in Sandton,” they said, without naming Mrs Mugabe.
Who is Grace Mugabe?
- Began affair with Robert Mugabe, 41 years her senior, while working as a typist in state house
- Mr Mugabe later said his first wife Sally, who was terminally ill at the time, knew and approved of the relationship
- Married Mr Mugabe, her second husband, in 1996 in an extravagant ceremony. They have three children
- Nicknamed “Gucci Grace” by her critics who accuse her of lavish spending
- Along with her husband, is subject to EU and US sanctions, including travel bans
- Praised by supporters for her charitable work and founding of an orphanage
- Received a PhD in September 2014, a month after being nominated to take over the leadership of the Zanu-PF women’s league
Why was she in South Africa?
She was due to be treated for an ankle injury, sustained during a road accident last month, according to Zimbabwean media.
It is not clear whether she was travelling on a diplomatic or a normal passport.
Zimbabwe’s first lady, Grace Mugabe
Mrs Mugabe is seen as a staunch defender of her husband, 93, and is the leader of the powerful women’s league of Zimbabwe’s governing Zanu-PF party.
Zimbabwean Information Minister Christopher Mushowe told the BBC he was unaware of the allegations against her.