Robert Martin Gumbura

Robert Martin Gumbura is the pastor of the RMG Independent End Time Message Church in Zimbabwe, and a convicted rapist.

Gumbura was convicted of four counts of rape and one on possession of pornographic material. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison and is currently serving his sentence at Zimbabwe's notorious Chikurubi Prison. His church was also suspended by Zimbabwe's religious body, ACCZ, for "Satanic practices" and for the child abuse allegations against Robert Gumbura. Parliament is currently seeking to permanently ban the church. Born in Kenzamba, Zimbabwe on the 29th of July 1956, he is alleged to have abused his congregants for over 30 years.

Gumbura had given himself the authority to have sex with any female congregant of his choice in his church regardless of their marital status and could “loan” them out to their husbands, but still retain certain rights. These rights included him being able to continue to have sexual intercourse with any women, despite their marital status. Gumbura was viewed as God in the church and indoctrinated his followers into believing that God directly communicated with him and gave him authority to do as he pleased. He said the church had songs composed in praise of Gumbura.

Leaked WhatsApp messages between two women who consented to having sex with Gumbura, despite one of them being married, revealed that of all the countless women Gumbura had sex with, he only used a condom on just one woman, who was described as "very beautiful but risky" - whereas the rest "sampled his anaconda live and direct". According to the leaked WhatsApp chat a married woman and that woman's daughter once took turns to have sex with Gumbura.

His span of control expanded all over Zimbabwe, and also in overseas countries such as the Leeds in the UK.

On the 18th of March 2015, vice president and justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa told parliament that jailed RGM Independent End Time Message Church leader Robert Martin Gumbura — who is serving a 40-year jail term for rape — was among over 100 inmates who planned the violent food riots that broke out at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison one Friday. Stating “Surprisingly also, Gumbura was chairing that conspiracy at the compound area where meals are served and the mutiny was over the issue of there being no meat in their relish.” As a result of this Gumbura has since been moved to the 'D' section of the prison, which is reserved for dangerous inmates.