Police investigate alleged Uebert Angel murder plot

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s special envoy to America and Europe, Uebert Angel, is facing a police investigation following allegations he hired hitmen to kill a rival church leader.

On April 26, a report was lodged at Harare Central Police Station with shocking claims that Angel, the leader of the GoodNews (Spirit Embassy) Church, was linked to an alleged plot involving two alleged South African assassins to kill the apostle Batsirai Java of the Tabernacle. from Grace Church in Harare.

Mnangagwa’s envoy, whose real name is Uebert Mudzanhire, and Java have been embroiled in a long dispute in which accusations of extortion and blackmail masterminded by the former have circulated.

Java was married to the daughter of the late former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Vimbai, who died after a car accident in 2019 and is the brother of another Mnangagwa apologist and ‘prophet’, Passion Java.

It has been established that the feud between the two church leaders took a dramatic turn last month when Java security aide Nigel Dutiro approached police about the alleged South African killers.

Dutiro confirmed that he made the report with RRB number 141472.

“It’s true,” he said. “I filed a police report because there has been a threat to life.”

Dutiro said he could not divulge further details about the report because the matter was now in the hands of the police.

However, it is understood that the alleged plot was exposed by a woman identified as Sharon Munro, who is said to reside in South Africa.

Munro was allegedly in Zimbabwe on March 31, where he stood alongside patrons at an upscale bar in the Harare suburb of Borrowdale, discussing the alleged elaborate plot against Java.

He left the country on April 3 through the Robert Mugabe International Airport.

According to people familiar with police investigations, the alleged murder plot was supposed to involve two South Africans identified only as Mkhwananzi and Ndimande, who entered Zimbabwe through Beitbridge and were then transported to Harare.

The plan allegedly failed when details were leaked by the woman linked to Angel and the South African duo had to return home without having completed the task.

Java was summoned last Sunday by police as part of the investigations, but was shy when approached for comment.

“I am aware that someone from my church has filed a complaint with the police and we are awaiting investigations,” he said.

Police spokesperson Paul Nyathi said he had not yet received information from Harare police on the matter before making a comment.

The person who took Munro’s phone said they had no idea what this post was asking when asked for a comment, but then posted the same questions on their WhatsApp status.

Ángel did not respond to questions sent to him by The Standard two weeks ago.

In April last year, the controversial church leader was at the center of an Al Jazeera Investigative Unit documentary that shed light on the illicit gold trade in southern Africa and money laundering involving figures powerful in Zimbabwe and the region.

Angel was secretly recorded promising undercover journalists access to Mnangagwa and his wife Auxillia in exchange for a fee.

He promised to facilitate large-scale gold smuggling and money laundering by abusing his diplomatic privileges.