Former South Africa’s first lady Grace Mugabe risks to be behind bars after state prosecuting authority issued an arrest warrant against her .
Mrs Mugabe was accused of assaulting a young model, Gabriella Engels, in a hotel in South Africa’s main city, Johannesburg, in 2017.
Mrs Mugabe said at the time that she had acted in self-defence after the “intoxicated and unhinged” model attacked her in a hotel room where her two sons lived.
She was allowed to return home after she applied for diplomatic immunity but in July this year a court annulled a government decision to grant her immunity.
“The police investigated and we made an application to the courts and the courts granted a warrant for the arrest… for the assault of Gabriella Engels,” police spokesman Vishnu Naidoo told AFP.
The Randburg Magistrates court in Gauteng province issued a warrant of arrest on December 13, charging Mugabe with “assault causing grievous bodily harm”.
“We are following the Interpol ( International Criminal Police) processes, so we applying for assistance to secure her arrest,” Naidoo added.
The 53-year-old allegedly beat up Engels using an electrical extension cord at a upmarket hotel in the business district of Sandton where her two sons were staying.
The model suffered cuts to her forehead and the back of her head.At the time, the government granted Mugabe diplomatic immunity, allowing her to leave South Africa.
Lobby group AfriForum, which has been pursuing the case on Engel’s behalf, welcomed the arrest warrant.
Robert Mugabe, 94, was ousted as president of Zimbabwe in November 2017 after a brief military takeover when generals stepped in to end speculation that he was positioning his wife to succeed him.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa, has said Mugabe has been in Singapore for medical care and now unable to walk because of ill health and old age.
South African model Gabriella Engels suffered cuts in Mugabe’s alleged assault. The incident strained ties between the neighbouring countries.
The alleged assault took place about three months before the military takeover in Zimbabwe which saw Robert Mugabe resign as president after 37 years in power.