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The helicopter went down at Kudenga Farm in the Marondera rural area about 70 kilometres east of Harare around 5pm local time on Wednesday after departing from Gandami in Chikomba where Chivayo and his wife had been overseeing construction of a rural home, state broadcaster ZBC reported. All six people on board perished with no survivors, according to a statement from Zimbabwe Republic Police spokesman Paul Nyathi. Family spokesperson Herbert Chivayo told ZBC that the family was devastated and at a loss for words over the deaths while government spokesman Nick Mangwana posted on X confirming that the flight carried a prominent businessman, three other passengers and two pilots.
Chivayo served as managing director of Intratrek Zimbabwe and obtained multiple high-value government contracts including a $172 million solar power project in Gwanda awarded in 2015, business registries and parliamentary records show. A parliamentary visit in March 2024 found the site largely undeveloped with overgrown vegetation and minimal infrastructure in place, one official assessment indicated. He additionally secured a contract worth more than $110 million to supply election materials for the 2023 general elections, according to local investigative accounts that highlighted irregularities in procurement procedures.
The businessman had previously served time in prison on fraud charges before rebuilding his commercial interests and cultivating a public image defined by lavish displays of wealth on social media, multiple Zimbabwean outlets reported. Chivayo frequently gifted luxury cars and large cash sums to religious figures, musicians and politicians, actions that drew both admiration and criticism within the country. Kenyan President William Ruto conveyed condolences on October 1 describing Chivayo as a friend whose sudden death represented a painful loss to his family and associates.
Bodies at the crash site were reported as badly burned requiring formal identification procedures, police officials stated while noting that funeral service providers had reached the location but remains had not yet been removed. The family confirmation of the couple’s deaths came hours after initial alerts about the incident spread through local media. Mangwana’s updated statement on X clarified the passenger count after an earlier version contained a discrepancy with police figures.
Investigations into the cause of the crash continued Wednesday night with authorities releasing no preliminary findings on possible mechanical issues or other factors, the Zimbabwe Republic Police indicated. The aircraft had been in the air for approximately 40 minutes at the time of the accident, sources briefed on the response told regional news services. No members of Chivayo’s immediate family from a prior marriage were aboard the helicopter, separate reports confirmed.
Chivayo’s high-profile ties to ruling party figures and regional leaders had made him a polarising presence in Zimbabwean business circles for more than a decade, according to profiles published by outlets such as The Zimbabwean and Africanews. His philanthropy and public gestures often generated significant attention on social media platforms where he maintained an active following. The deaths have prompted an outpouring of messages from across the region as details of the fatal flight emerged.
