Gold rush at Sam Levy's mansion

Spirit mediums from former president Robert Mugabe's Gushungo clan have descended on two adjacent farmhouses at the late business tycoon Sam Levy's former Lilfordia Farm in Zvimba, claiming the properties are linked by an underground tunnel filled with gold nuggets that could transform Zimbabwe's economic fortunes.

Lilfordia Farm was once owned by Levy, whose business empire included the upmarket Sam Levy's Village shopping complex in Harare's Borrowdale suburb. Levy died in June 2012 at the age of 82 after a long illness.

At the farm, Levy had constructed two large houses – one on a hilltop and another at the foot of the hill, about 400 metres apart. According to members of the Gushungo clan, spirit mediums identified as Chatunga (Collin Chikambi) and Beperere (George Chikaka) claim their ancestral spirits revealed that a tunnel laden with gold connects the two structures.

On Tuesday, NewsDay visited Lilfordia Farm near Harare and found a group of men actively digging inside one of the farmhouses. An approximately eight-metre tunnel had been excavated in one room, while another four-metre shaft had already been dug in a different room. The operation was being led by Chatunga and Beperere.

Cloths of various colours, commonly associated with traditional rituals, were hung on the doors of the farmhouse. The men, who only identified themselves as members of the Gushungo clan, were reluctant to explain their activities.

"Even if we tell you, you will not understand what we are doing. We are performing a ritual," one clan member said, referring all questions to Chatunga.

Chatunga confirmed that rituals were underway but declined to explain why digging was taking place inside the house.

"We have advised everyone. Even [former police commissioner-general Augustine] Chihuri knows this," he said, before becoming evasive.

However, police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said she was unaware of the activities.

"We don't know anything about it," Charamba said.

Some clan members told NewsDay that Chatunga had boasted he would soon obtain a mining licence from then Mines minister Walter Chidakwa to mine gold at Lilfordia Farm. Chidakwa is reportedly also a member of the Gushungo clan. Efforts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful as he was not responding to calls.

Traditional leaders in the area expressed concern and said they had not been consulted.

Chief Zvimba, Stanley Mhondoro, said he had only heard informally that some family members were searching for gold at the farmhouse in his jurisdiction.

"If it is a ritual, I am Zvimba and I deserve to be consulted," he said.

"Who gave them authority to dig in a farmhouse that belongs to council and government? If it is a ritual, it is not done in a house, but in the forest. How can rituals in our family be conducted without the involvement of senior spirit mediums like Dutsa and Mushayapekuvaka? Every member of the Gushungo clan has a right to know and participate."

Chief Beperere (Alfred Tome) also said he was unaware of the developments, adding that if the family was exhuming remains, proper procedures involving traditional leaders, the police and the Registrar-General's Office should have been followed.

Village head Raphael Chakaramba of Sunside Central, which includes Lilfordia Farm, said he had not been informed of any rituals or alleged treasure hunt.

The incident has drawn comparisons with the infamous 2007 "diesel n'anga" saga, when senior government officials were misled by traditional healer Rotina Mavhunga, also known as Nomatter Tagarira, into believing diesel was flowing from a rock at Maningwa Hills near Chinhoyi. A high-level government delegation, including several cabinet ministers and senior security officials, visited the site before the claims were exposed as false, leading to Mavhunga's arrest.

Levy himself had a chequered history with authorities. In October 2000, he escaped with a US$200 fine after being convicted of importing 50 motorbikes labelled "Police" without authorisation. The motorbikes were recovered at Lilfordia Farm, the same property now at the centre of the alleged gold hunt.

Although Levy lost Lilfordia Farm during the fast-track land reform programme, he retained the farmhouse structures.

As digging continues, questions are mounting over the legality of the activities, the role of traditional authority, and whether history is repeating itself in yet another high-profile quest for mythical riches.