HARARE: Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivayo, his wife and several others were killed on Wednesday in a helicopter crash, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said.
Mnangagwa said in a statement on X that he was "in deep shock and grief," while in a separate post Kenya's President William Ruto called Chivayo his friend and said he was saddened by his passing.
Chivayo cultivated close ties with Mnangagwa and other African leaders, posting pictures with them on social media where he also flaunted luxury cars, designer clothing and lavish gifts.
A government spokesperson said on Wednesday that a helicopter with a high-profile businessman on board had crashed but did not give the businessman's name.
Critics frequently cited Chivayo as an example of a small elite class that benefited from government-linked contracts under Zimbabwe's long-ruling ZANU-PF party.
He denied allegations of corruption.
Chivayo was jailed for several years after a 2005 conviction as part of a money-laundering case.
He was arrested in 2018 over the alleged misuse of a $5.6 million advance payment tied to a solar power project, but a magistrate struck the case off the court roll in 2023, citing delays by prosecutors.
In 2024, he again drew scrutiny after Mnangagwa described his company as Starlink's exclusive partner in Zimbabwe, prompting the telecommunications regulator to clarify that it was one of several approved resellers.