Police raid journalist Mathuthu’s home

POLICE yesterday raided online publication ZimLive editor, Mduduzi Mathuthu’s home and ransacked it in search of “subversive material” allegedly to be used in today’s protests.

Mathuthu has gone into hiding, but police took away his sister Nomagugu Mathuthu, as bait to force the former

Chronicle editor to surrender himself to the law enforcement agents.

“Police late this afternoon raided the home of editor Mduduzi Mathuthu. Search warrant bearing a wrong address accuses him of keeping and manufacturing subversive materials and inducing Zimbabweans to engage in public violence on #July31. Mathuthu now in hiding,” a ZimLive tweet read.

Before taking away his sister, the police allegedly arrested Mathuthu’s nephews Amandlenkosi Mathuthu, Advent Mathuthu and Tawanda Muchehiwa.

The raid on Mathuthu follows the arrest of fellow journalist Hopewell Chin’ono on Monday last week along with opposition leader Jacob Ngarivhume for allegedly inciting people to protest.

Police yesterday also arrested leader of a foundation of late MDC treasurer-general Roy Bennett, which this week announced that it would offer assistance to any protester who will be injured, arrested, persecuted or prosecuted by the State during today’s protests.

Roy Bennett Foundation programmes co-ordinator Never Jofris was allegedly arrested following a statement that they stood in solidarity with victims of injustice and political oppression in Zimbabwe.

Police national spokesperson Assistant

Commissioner Paul Nyathi said he was yet to get the report about both Mathuthu and Jofris’ arrest.

“I am still checking with Bulawayo,” Nyathi said.

This came as the purported secretarygeneral Kurt Louis Heyns’ lawyer Gerald Mlotshwa yesterday distanced Heyns from the foundation.

“We categorically, on behalf of Mr Heyns, state that he is not aware of the existence of such a foundation, and any reports or statements purporting to link his name to the same are utterly false and mischievous in the extreme,” Mlotshwa said.

“Information made available to us regarding the very likely source of the dangerous nonsense, stemming from litigation our client is involved in, will be passed to the relevant authorities for their fuller investigation.”