MP subjected to series of suspicious car break-ins

FORMER president Robert Mugabe and Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) director of security Albert Ngulube, now Zanu PF MP for Beitbridge East, has been subjected to a series of suspicious break-ins over the past few months by unknown people who have on all occasion stolen his documents, leaving other valuables.

This has given rise to speculation that the assailants, believed to be his erstwhile former colleagues in the state spy agency, could be targeting some information they think he may have.

The attacks come amid growing security concerns around some officials in President Emmerson Mnangagwa's administration.

Ngulube lost his CIO job because of his alleged links to Mugabe, who was ousted from power in a military coup in November 2017, even though he has insisted he was just a professional not aligned to any Zanu PF faction at the time.

Ngulube is now reportedly in good books with Mnangagwa and other senior government officials. During the coup, Ngulube endured several days of military detention, during which he was severely beaten and tortured for being Mugabe's close security boss. He, however, emerged from the situation to win the Beitbridge East parliamentary seat on a Zanu PF ticket in last July's general election.

National police spokesman Paul Nyathi confirmed receiving a report on the latest break-in, which occurred at Avondale shopping centre in Harare on Tuesday evening this week, Tuesday's break-in, which took place around 9pm after he came from parliament and parked his car to buy himself dinner at a local restaurant, is one in a series of raids which have reportedly left him shaken.

"He has suffered a series of suspicious break-ins where his bags were searched and documents were stolen, while other valuables are not touched. The latest break-in happened at 9pm at Avondale," said one state security agent.

"He had come from parliament and passed through a restaurant at the shopping centre. After the meal, he went back to the car to get his bank cards so that he could pay the bill, only to discover that it had been broken into."

According to security guards who secure the area, two men drove in an unmarked black Toyota sedan vehicle and proceeded to smash his windows with steel bars before stealing documents. They were, however, interrupted by the guards who, upon noticing the incident, advanced toward the scene, prompting the assailants to abandon the mission, They jumped into their car and drove off at high speed, taking with them some of the legislator's documents.


Ngulube reported the matter at Avondale police station under case number RRB3960977.

Nyathi said the matter was under investigation.

"We confirm that we are investigating a case in which the honourable MPs car was Sec broken into on June 18 2019. The case is currently under police investigations and we dot hope to establish what exactly transpired Aft and the possibility of picking suspects," Nyathi said.

In another incident, Ngulube's car was of broken into on May 8 as he watched the Uefa Champions League match between English club Tottenham Hotspurs and the Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam at a local hotel.

Upon returning to the car park, he discovered that his vehicle had been broken into by men who pulled in driving an unmarked white car. They had broken his car windows and made off with a bag containing documents.

They later dropped the bag in the city centre. It was picked up by a passerby who took it to a police station in Mbare. Police then called him to collect the bag after coming across his parliament business cards.

Another incident took place at his rural home in Beitbridge where unknown people broke into his Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle which was parked at his homestead on June 11. They went away with his battery and some items.

Ngulube this week confirmed the incidents but refused to give details saying police were still investigating the case.

"Police are still investigating, so I can't say much," he said.