Joe Thomas motorcade involved in accident in Zimbabwe

By Wilson Watson,

HARARE, Zimbabwe- A Mercedes Benz ML 320 that was part of American pop singer Joe Thomas’s entourage when he came to Zimbabwe two weeks ago was involved in an accident while accompanying the singer in a suspected bid to injure the musician.

The accident happened a few hours before the popular musician performed a show at the Harare International Conference Center, two days after he had arrived in the country.
For the two days he had been traveling in the car but on the day in question he had deliberately changed cars to travel in a Hammer that was part of the entourage.
The Mercedes Benz belonged to Zimbabwean musician Prince Mupfurutswa who later played with the American singer.

The car that ran in to the Benz was allegedly driven by a Nigerian national identified as Israel Joshua, and two other unidentified men.
The three were also allegedly monitoring the movements of the singer since he arrived in the country. Takudzwa Wanyanya, who was driving the car at the time of the incident and Mupfurutswa both, confirmed the incident.
“I heard a thud from behind and I immediately stopped. I was alone in the car and the men wanted to drive off as soon as they realized that I was alone. I was assisted by some vendors who were nearby and people from Jameson Hotel who had seen the accident taking place. The man insisted that he had to go but we stopped him until the police arrived”, explained Wanyanya.

“He wanted to give me a business card as a form of identity but we had to go to his house with the police where his wife produced his passport. The man acted in a rude way and he said he would pay for the damage in cash the following Monday”.
“The police asked us to report back within seven days. We did so but nothing has been done yet. He seems not to be willing to assist,” said Wanyanya.

Mupfurutsaw said he was suspicious of the man’s intentions on trailing the motorcade but was quick to point out that it was fortunate that the accident had not been fatal.
“It was an accident and such things happen everyday. We cannot shed tears over pieces of metal no matter how shiny they might be. To me it is an incident not an accident because no lives were lost.

“It is unfortunate that the responsible guy is not being co-operative but I am sure he will be assisted to see the folly of his arrogance and be convinced to pay,” said Mupfurutswa.
Thomas was in the country as part of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority’s (ZTA) drive to bring celebrities into the country to promote tourism
Tourism arrivals have over the years gone down as the country suffered negative publicity mainly from its traditional customers-the EU countries.
Apart from Thomas, ZTA has also brought in reggae icon Luciano who performed in the city.