He appeared before Magistrate Lisa Mutendereki at the Harare Provincial Magistrate’s Court, where he asked for leniency, stating that he is a farmer, a single father of two children, and a first-time offender earning around US $7,000 a month.
The substance was discovered during a police operation in Harare’s central business district in October, when Mugabe Jr. was driving in the wrong direction on a one-way street, was stopped, searched, and found to have 2 g of cannabis (in two sachets) and a grinder in his sling bag.
On Thursday, Magistrate Mutendereki handed down a sentence: a fine of US $300, and a three-month suspended sentence on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within the next five years.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police had earlier sought to link Mugabe Jr. to a broader cartel of alleged drug dealers in Harare, including children of some prominent Zimbabwean citizens.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has publicly declared a zero-tolerance stance on drug and substance abuse, describing it as a “moral cancer” and a threat to society