Albert Sumbo cornered

TODAY we get into the fourth instalment of our conversation with Mr Matthew Masuku, who served in the Rhodesian police force. He served in the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) across all its units such as Homicide, Store Breakings, Vehicle Theft Squad, Theft from Motor Vehicles and Sabotage currently known as the Law-and-Order Section where he spent the better part of his career.

After the attainment of Independence, Mr Masuku continued serving in the new nation’s police force and rose through the ranks, attaining the rank of Detective Inspector.

Today in the interview with our Assistant Editor Mkhululi Sibanda (MS) Mr Masuku who in the past instalments has been taking the readers through how he joined the police force in the early 1960s and its operations, today speaks about how they arrested Zipra guerilla, the now late Cde Albert Sumbo Ncube in Bulawayo after he had allegedly committed seven murder cases in Matabeleland North Province in areas such as Lupane District and Victoria Falls as well as in Bulawayo.

The Tsholotsho-born Cde Sumbo Ncube had also allegedly committed a spate of armed robberies in the above-mentioned areas. He had become one of the most hunted down and wanted men during that period. However, the seemingly well-trained Cde Sumbo Ncube was to make a mockery of the Rhodesian security system by making a daring escape from Victoria Falls Police Station where he was being kept in solitary confinement, chained to the floor and naked. Mr Masuku was one of the details who was fooled by Cde Sumbo Ncube. Below Mr Masuku gives an account on how Cde Sumbo Ncube was finally cornered and arrested at his parents’ home in Bulawayo’s Mabutweni suburb. Read on . . .

MS: So, after the arrest of the guerilla at Kamativi Mine, you spoke about making follow-ups on his colleagues, but there is the talk that you were later on to be involved in the arrest of Cde Albert Sumbo Ncube who at that time was one of the most wanted people by the Rhodesians. Take us through that.

Mr Masuku: Later on, I was moved to Bulawayo and that was in 1972 when I was transferred to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), leaving my position as a Ground Coverage detail in the Dete area and its surroundings. During my duties as a Ground Coverage detail which involved keeping surveillance on politicians and homes of those who had left the country to join the armed struggle, I also took note of the need to free this country from the white minority rule. I was sympathetic to the guerillas but I took work as a duty that I had to do as well. As for that guerilla that I caught at Kamativi, I had this feeling later on in my life that I could have let him go. I had four relatives in the war including Lookout Masuku who later on was to become the Zipra commander.

MS: Let us come to Cde Albert Sumbo Ncube, it seems he made headlines as shown by the coverage made by The Chronicle during that period. Tell us how you cornered him.

Mr Masuku: I was working in the CID under what was called the Sabotage Unit, which is the Law-and-Order Section nowadays. So, one day in December 1976, I was asked by the bosses to go and locate a certain house at Number Two (Mabutweni).

I managed to locate the house and the white detectives had this tendency of not telling us the blacks the details of operations or investigations especially if they were of political nature. They did not trust blacks with sensitive information. In the Sumbo case, I was also not told why I had to go to Number Two and look for that mentioned house.

In actual fact, I did not even know that it had to do with the investigations zikaSumbo. After locating the house, I was told that we had to report back to work at midnight as there was a serious operation we had to carry out. Under such circumstances it was a serious offence for one to report for duty late, one could even be fired for that. So instead of going home as I was afraid that I could oversleep, resulting in reporting for duty late and missing the midnight deadline I decided to hang around some drinking spots.

I then went to Happy Valley Hotel in Nguboyenja, which during those days was an attractive spot for blacks, it was considered an upmarket drinking spot for the blacks. So, I was there until I went to Mzilikazi Police Station near the Renkini Long Distance Bus Terminus to report for duty that would take us to the operation that was unknown to us as black detectives. When we assembled that is when I was told that I would take the team to that Mabutweni house.

Unknown to me while I was whiling up time at the Happy Valley Hotel, Sumbo was there as well drinking. He was to tell me later on after being arrested that he had seen me and expressed his regret on not shooting me.

MS: Interesting, so you led the unit that raided Sumbo to his hiding place?

Mr Masuku: Yes, I am the one who did that because I had gone to locate that house so “yimi engangisithi khona lapha hamba so” until we got to the house. We raided the home at 3am or so and that is where we fished Sumbo from. He did not resist and he had just arrived from a beer drink at Happy Valley. On his arrest he initially tried to deny that he was a terrorist, as guerillas were called then.

He told me in the presence of other officers, that is the arresting party, that he had seen me at Happy Valley Hotel and even showed me where he had been stamped as is the rule at night clubs to show that one had paid and given permission to enter the premises. A white officer then said so you guys you know each other and Sumbo speaking in SiNdebele as he made it clear that he would not use any other language besides Ndebele said he knew me from Dete where he had stayed for some time as a youngster. I then realised that indeed he knew me. Since I was a policeman there was every chance that people knew me, I had arrived in Dete in the 1960s. However, it was not possible for me to know many people especially children growing up.

MS: Did he admit that he was a guerilla or he offered some resistance?

Mr Masuku: At first he refused and pleaded his innocence and that was when we were on our way to Ross Camp where he was to be interrogated. However, he was shocked when he was shown a picture of himself and he cursed the Tswanas for doing that and selling out.

He had been taken that picture in Botswana and somehow it was brought to the Rhodesian security forces. At that moment his world collapsed around him and it became clear that it was game over for him. In, fact that boy was not tortured per se as he was singing throughout. “Wayehlabela umfana lowana,” he had realised that we had enough information on him. Then his arrest had a serious bearing on the country’s politics, that is the nationalists versus the Rhodesian government.

MS: How was that? Please explain.

Mr Masuku: When Sumbo started killing people the Rhodesian government obviously accused the nationalist movements of committing cold-blooded murders on innocent people while the nationalists also accused the Rhodesian government and its security forces of using its intelligence units to kill those people so as to soil their image in the eyes of the international community.

Those killings coincided with the Geneva Conference, so a lot was at stake in terms of politics. So, when Sumbo was arrested, he was quickly taken to court, imagine he was arrested in a dawn raid and by 2pm he was appearing in court because to the Rhodesian government his arrest was a big coup.

They wanted to discredit the nationalist movements, to say to the international community these guerillas are doing a lot of banditry around and committing cold-blooded murders even on missionaries. Obviously, the Rhodesians were so happy when Sumbo was arrested that is why he was taken to court as soon as possible. The news of Sumbo’s arrest spread around the world like veld fire as if to say here is the person who killed the Catholic bishop and the nuns.

Indeed, that boy made headlines. “So kwahle kwaba sobala ukuthi ngama gorila.” On that day I did not sleep, I was excused at 10am to go and bath and change as at 2pm we were taking Sumbo to court. From court here in Bulawayo we took him to Esigodini where he was detained.

MS: What charges was Sumbo facing?

Mr Masuku: He was facing seven murder cases including those of Bishop Adolph Schmitt and a Catholic priest and nun. He appeared before Bulawayo provincial magistrate Mr Jack Riley on 31 January 1976 the day he had been arrested on and was remanded in custody to 14 January. His appearance was meant to confirm his statements and as I said above it was also big political public relations (PR) exercise by the Rhodesian government. It was a PR stunt indeed.

MS: How was his reaction in court?

Mr Masuku: That boy had no formal schooling, he had ended his schooling at primary level but my God, there was one thing about him. He was naturally intelligent, he impressed me. When we were recording his statement Sumbo wrote in iSiNdebele and I am the one who translated it to English while Detective Section Officer, rank equivalent to today’s Assistant Inspector did the typing. At that moment it seems Sumbo understood the situation he was in and kept his cool, co-operated with the law enforcement agents, obviously to avoid heavy torture. He told the court that no one had influenced him to admit to the charges he was being accused of.

MS: Okay, let’s go to specifics, take us through Sumbo’s time in court.

Mr Masuku: Alright. His admissions included the following:

The murder of Mr Robert Calvert who was killed when a group of guerillas attacked Peter’s Motel in Victoria Falls on 30 October 1976.

Murder of Victoria Falls farmer, Mr Arthur Ross Cumming at his home, France Farm on 8 November 1976.

Placing and detonating landmines on the Victoria Falls railway line at Masui Bridge on 2 November and 1 December 1976.

Robbery at Gwayi Siding Store and the attempted murder of Mr John Hartely on 27 November 1976.

The murder of three Catholic missionaries that is Bishop Adolf Schmitt, Father Possenti Weggartner and Sister Maria Francis van den Berg in Lupane on 5 December 1976. Attempted murder on the same date as Sister Ermefried Knauer.

Attempted robbery at Forestvale Butchery, which was a settlement for small plots and that is the place where Emakhandeni suburb today stands. That attempted robbery took place on 11 December 1976.

Murder of Lance Corporal Charlie McLeod at Umhambi (Matsotsi) Cocktail Bar in Njube and that of Mr Austin Nyathi at Ikhwezi Club in Pelandaba suburb on 11 December.

Attempted robbery at MaKalanga Beer Garden in Mabutweni suburb in Bulawayo on 19 December 1976.

Attempted murder of Mr Antonio Camacha and robbery of Hyde Park Store in Bulawayo on 22 December. In his statements he told us that he had left Rhodesia for Johannesburg (South Africa) in 1973 where he was recruited. He then went to Botswana in 1975 where he got in touch with Zapu members and few months down the line he was flown to Zambia from where he was taken to Tanzania for military training. Like I said he made these statements in his own handwriting in Ndebele and I just translated them to English. He had arrived in Rhodesia for operations in a unit of five. When he got to court Sumbo was handcuffed to me.

To be completed next week when Mr Masuku gives an account of how Sumbo escaped from the tight security he was placed under.