The family of Godknows Machingura, a suspect in an armed robbery case, is demanding an independent inquiry into his killing by police detectives. They believe that the police account of the shooting does not match the evidence observed during the autopsy or the explanations given by Machingura’s friends. Machingura, who was 44 years old at the time, was shot dead by detectives from the Harare CID homicide in December 2023.
According to the police, Machingura and his five friends, including Paul Zhou and Jabulani Ngobeni, were trailed by detectives who received a tip about their planned robberies, including targeting prominent individuals for ransom. The police claimed that Machingura died from a gunshot wound to the groin after a shootout in the Arcadia suburb of Harare.
However, a family member, speaking anonymously, disputed the police’s account, insisting that Machingura was a victim of police execution. She stated that during the post-mortem examination, five bullet wounds were observed on his body, including two shots to the head, one below the ribs, and two on his legs.
The family member shared graphic images from Machingura’s autopsy, showing the gunshot wounds and his badly beaten body. She told ZimLive:According to the family member, Machingura had been under surveillance by the police since April last year, and detectives eventually used Zhou to lure him to his death. She claimed that Machingura was dragged into Zhou’s house, where he was severely beaten before being forced into a vehicle and driven to an unknown location where he was killed. The family member said:
Godknows was lured by the police to go to Zhou’s Waterfalls residence where armed CID officers fired shots three times in the air and commanded him to get out of his car and put his hands in the air before cuffing him.
He was dragged into Zhou’s house where he was severely beaten.
We hear that officers who held him captive then discussed among themselves on who among the six was should die on the day and they agreed on Machingura and Jabulani (Ngobeni).
Godknows and Jabulani were forced into Honda Fit vehicles and driven to an unknown location where they were killed and the remaining four were taken to remand.
Godknows back was also torn, and Jabulani also on his armpit has a huge hole, even his hands were torn apart by what appears to be very sharp objects.
These people are cruel and we want justice.
The family members expressed frustration in their efforts to uncover the truth from the police. In response, the national police spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi, advised the family to approach the Commissioner of Police if they felt aggrieved by the police conduct. He stated that the police were conducting investigations and would release more information once the investigative processes were complete.
