Music legend and producer Peter Muparutsa (Fortune Muparutsa’s brother) in court, accused of killing for rituals
Mutare – Veteran Zimbabwean producer and musician Peter “Cool Dude” Muparutsa, 66, best known for his work with the RUNN Family, finds himself at the centre of a disturbing controversy. Relatives have accused him of orchestrating the ritual murder of a Mozambican woman during his rise to musical fame.
The explosive allegations were levelled against the ageing producer by his grandnephew, Macdonald Nyamajiya. Nyamajiya claims Muparutsa later “married” him and his two brothers off to the slain woman’s vengeful spirit (chikwambo), which he says has been tormenting their family ever since.
The matter reached Chief Mutasa’s community court recently after Muparutsa reported Nyamajiya, accusing him of harassment through what he described as “frivolous” allegations.
Muparutsa presented to the court a series of text messages from Nyamajiya, accusing him of being a heartless murderer and ritualist who had destroyed his family.
One of the messages read: “If you are free, come to Dangamvura today so that we see each other face-to-face. You know your stories or give me an address of where you stay so that I come there myself. Let us not meet in the spirit, but let us meet during daylight, enough is enough.”
Another message, filled with rage, stated: “I am not afraid of you, you are not God. Personally, it is now boring me because you are responsible for our suffering, so we have to meet. There shall come a time where we will be assaulting each other and striking each other with axes. I do not want a grandfather who makes me his scapegoat. What you have done is enough. If you do anything to me, know that you and your family will perish. Play your guitar at church later after you have finished appeasing this spirit.”
Visibly shaken by the venom, Muparutsa confirmed the accusations. “I am being accused by my older brother’s daughter’s son of wizardry, possessing goblins, and causing all the mishaps in their family. I was shocked when I went through his text messages,” he told the court.
In response, Nyamajiya explained to the court that his offensive messages stemmed from deep pain. “My late mother was a Muparutsa and my father hails from Bocha. However, I grew up within the Muparutsa family and use their surname. Growing up, we were told that he (Peter) has goblins, and that he was being haunted by an avenging spirit because he killed someone in Mozambique,” he said.
Nyamajiya further alleged that the spirit began manifesting in his younger brother in April. “My brother acted as if he was paralysed and would shout Peter’s name. It is still happening up to now,” he claimed, adding that consultations with traditional healers pointed to Muparutsa as the source of the trouble.
He claimed the spirit insisted that he and his two brothers were spiritually “wedded” to a female goblin by the musician. “It is said that he killed a woman of the Tembo Clan, and is the one whose spirit we were married to. She was from Mozambique. The woman claims she was killed for rituals to enhance his musical fame. Every healer we consulted pointed an accusing finger at him,” said Nyamajiya.
Another family member, Bridget Muparutsa, testified that the allegations have haunted their family for generations. “We heard about it as we grew up. We would get married and come back home widowed because our husbands would have died,” she said. “We wanted to be here with the rest of the family, but in the process of taking the matter to Headman Muparutsa, Peter brought the case before this court.”
The matter took an unexpected turn when Chief Mutasa ruled that Nyamajiya had no standing to sue Peter. “Macdonald, you are not a Muparutsa, it is your mother, who was a Muparutsa. If a Muparutsa killed someone, it is not possible for the avenging spirit to torment you because you are not a member of the Muparutsa family by blood,” Chief Mutasa stated.
He cautioned Nyamajiya, “You cannot come here accusing your uncle because you are not a Muparutsa. His family should report him, and not you.” He further warned Nyamajiya against being drawn into his uncles’ family feuds. “Do not be too convinced of what you are hearing — what if it is someone else that is using his face? Do not be used to fight battles that are not yours. Let the Muparutsa family approach my court to sue him, not you. I am not favouring anyone in this matter, but we need to help you guys,” said Chief Mutasa.
Nyamajiya was fined a beast for disrespecting his uncle. “You were disrespectful. For that, you must pay him a beast. You cannot challenge an elder in this manner,” Chief Mutasa ruled.
Despite the ruling, Chief Mutasa urged the Muparutsa family to unite and consult traditional healers together to resolve the underlying issues. “I am ordering the Muparutsa family to unite and consult traditional healers together to settle the matter,” he said. The case leaves many questions unanswered, and the Muparutsa family now faces the task of addressing these serious allegations and finding a path toward reconciliation.
