IS Freeman a robber? Or, is he a sympathiser of robbers and is comfortable in their company despite the heinous crimes they commit, including murder?Is the HKD boss so clueless that he doesn’t know the dangers, and implications, of his association with these heartless criminals?These are some of the questions which were trending on social media yesterday after Freeman, once again, found himself being linked to a robber.
This followed the death of armed robber, 44, who was shot dead in a shoot-out with police in Arcadia on Tuesday. Machingura was based in South Africa and was part of a gang of criminals which also included three South African nationals. Reports say the gang wanted to hit a number of targets around the country and had booked a lodge in Arcadia to plan their criminal activities. The detectives were tipped of their presence and busted the criminals leading to the death of two suspected armed robbers.Once again, pictures have emerged in which Freeman is posing with Machingura.
Repeated efforts by H-Metro to get hold of him were not successful.Two years ago, the musician found himself in a similar position after an armed robber, who was his friend, was shot and killed at the house of lawyer Joseph Nemaisa.The image of Freeman enjoying the company of Charles Chirara emerged after the latter was gunned down.The musician, however, defended himself saying he knew Chirara from 2016, as a voluntary bouncer, at his shows.Later that year, Freeman went on to release an album titled Robbery.
Explaining the title of the album to H-Metro, Freeman said:“The title was inspired by the Covid-19 pandemic, which robbed us of our earnings, loved ones and stalled progress in every field. “The past 18 months or so have been very difficult for some of us who relied on life shows for survival.” However, pictures of guns, which are used by armed robbers during the commissioning of their criminal activities, including one in which Freeman is seen holding a pistol, became the images of the album. Some members of his inner circle say he is paying the price of being a celebrity who has welcomed all his fans and developed close links with them. They say it was the fans, and not Freeman, who demanded that the photographs be taken.
However, given he was once questioned by the police over his links to these armed robbers, one would have expected Freeman to be careful when it comes to the people he associates with. The death of Machingura has shown that he didn’t learn his lessons from the Chirara debacle and some are now even suggesting he could be an armed robber himself.
