BULAWAYO – A man accused of taking part in the fatal shooting of Bulawayo businessman Tedious Rutanhira during a US$10,000 robbery has appeared in court, as police pursue a gang they say is linked to 10 armed robberies in the city and surrounding areas.
Shelton Jubane, 37, appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Ms Annah Muzondiwa facing a murder charge. He was remanded in custody until 25 September and was advised to apply for bail at the High Court.
The case has placed Jubane at the centre of an investigation involving a string of armed attacks, two deaths in a police shoot-out and an outstanding suspect. Police have identified the two men killed in the exchange of gunfire as Mehluli Ncube, 45, also known as Mamba, and Muzi Richard Fambirai Moyo, 45.
Four other suspects were arrested in connection with the wider investigation. They are Jubane, Charles Ndlovu, 52, Prince Chisale and Clive Ncube, 27. In the murder case before the magistrate, however, the State alleges that Jubane acted alongside Ncube, Moyo and Bhekimpilo Mabuza, who was described in court as still being at large.
Rutanhira, 52, was shot shortly after 11pm on 14 September after closing his shop near a Zuva service station along Joshua Mqabuko Street, between Third and Fourth avenues in central Bulawayo.
The State alleges that the four men were armed with pistols when they targeted him. Rutanhira was walking towards his vehicle, which was parked at the service station, when the attackers approached him and tried to seize the bag he was carrying.
Prosecuting, Mr Milton Moyo told the court that Rutanhira resisted the attack before the gang opened fire.
“While the deceased was walking towards his car, the accused and his accomplices emerged and tried to forcibly take the bag he was clutching but he resisted.
“They then fired shots at him, killing him on the spot,” said Mr Moyo.
The attackers allegedly took the bag, which contained US$10,000, and fled. Taxi drivers who witnessed the shooting tried to stop them and attempted to make a citizen’s arrest, but the gang allegedly fired towards the drivers as it escaped.
The shooting brought an immediate police response. Investigators arrested Jubane the following day, while Ncube and Moyo were later killed during a shoot-out with police. The national police spokesperson, Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said the suspects were connected to 10 armed robbery cases in Bulawayo and nearby areas.
Police said the wider operation had resulted in the arrest of four suspects. The deaths of Ncube and Moyo brought the number of men named in the investigation to six, with Mabuza still being sought in the murder proceedings.
The court proceedings have also linked Jubane and the same alleged group to two incidents that took place three days before Rutanhira was killed.
Jubane, who is from Lupane in Matabeleland North Province, appeared before Bulawayo Regional Magistrate Mr Lungile Ncube on Monday facing a separate charge of armed robbery. He was not asked to plead. The court advised him of his right to engage a lawyer at his own cost and to apply for bail at the Bulawayo High Court. He was remanded in custody until 1 October.
Prosecuting, Ms Tsungai Charmaine Mutapi, told the court that the first incident occurred shortly after 11pm on 11 September at a Puma fuel station at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Street.
“This month on 11 September 2026, shortly after 11pm, Jubane and his accomplices—Mehluli Ncube, who was known as Mamba, and Muzi Richard Fambirai Moyo, both of whom subsequently died in a police shootout, alongside Bhekimpilo Mabuza, who is still at large—armed themselves with pistols.
“They pounced on a Puma fuel station situated at the corner of 5th Avenue and Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Street in Bulawayo, whereupon arrival they manhandled the complainant and demanded cash.
“The complainant ran into a storeroom and locked herself inside. Sensing danger, the accused persons fled,” the court heard.
The gang allegedly moved on later that night to a guest lodge at the corner of Connaught Avenue and Herbert Chitepo Street. There, one of the men allegedly produced a pistol, threatened to shoot the cashier and demanded money.
The cashier was searched and the group allegedly took US$265 before leaving the lodge.
The two incidents, followed by the killing of Rutanhira, have given investigators a sequence of alleged attacks involving the same names, locations around central Bulawayo and the use of pistols to demand cash. The police have connected those cases to a broader list of 10 armed robberies, although the specific details of all the cases have not been made public.
The fatal attack also drew attention because of the attempt by taxi drivers to pursue the suspects immediately after the shooting. The drivers were forced to abandon the effort after shots were fired in their direction, allowing the gang to escape through the streets of central Bulawayo.
Jubane’s arrest the next day marked the first known breakthrough in the murder investigation. The subsequent police operation ended with the deaths of Ncube and Moyo and the arrests of Ndlovu, Chisale and Clive Ncube, in addition to Jubane.
Jubane now faces separate court proceedings arising from the alleged murder and the earlier armed robbery charges. The murder matter was postponed to 25 September, while the armed robbery case was remanded to 1 October.
Police continue to look for Mabuza, whose name appears in both court cases. The investigation remains centred on the alleged gang’s movements across Bulawayo, the attacks on businesses and the trail of cash taken during the robberies.
The charges before the courts cover the shooting of Rutanhira, the attempted robbery at the Puma station and the theft of US$265 from the guest lodge. Together with the police’s account of 10 linked robbery cases, they form the basis of the continuing crackdown on the alleged armed robbery network in Bulawayo and surrounding areas.
The State’s case is that Jubane and his alleged accomplices planned the attacks, carried pistols and used violence or threats to obtain cash. The proceedings will continue as police follow up the remaining cases and search for the suspect still wanted in connection with the two court matters.