The death of Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivayo in a helicopter crash has cast a fresh spotlight on his unusually close relationship with President William Ruto, a connection that had increasingly moved beyond ordinary diplomatic or business encounters.
Chivayo, a flamboyant businessman whose public profile was built around vast wealth, high-profile political connections and a string of business interests, died alongside five other people when a helicopter crashed in Zimbabwe’s Marondera Rural area on Wednesday evening.
Zimbabwean authorities said there were no survivors.
The Associated Press reported that Chivayo and his wife, Lucy Muteke, were among those killed, although authorities were still working to formally identify all the victims.
His death comes barely weeks after Chivayo publicly showcased one of his most remarkable encounters with Ruto — the Kenyan President personally getting behind the wheel and driving the Zimbabwean businessman and his wife to a waiting helicopter at the President’s private residence in Kilgoris, Narok County.
It was a three-kilometre journey, but for Chivayo it became a symbol of the extraordinary access he appeared to enjoy around the Kenyan Head of State.
“Imagine me sitting in the front passenger seat with my wife at the back while the President of the Republic of Kenya, the Head of State himself, was behind the steering wheel personally driving me to the chopper,” Chivayo wrote in a social-media post.
He described the moment as one of the most memorable experiences of his life and thanked Ruto for what he called the President’s “genuine love” and kindness.
A relationship that became increasingly public
The Chivayo-Ruto connection was not a one-off encounter.
Publicly documented meetings between the two intensified from 2025, with Chivayo repeatedly posting photographs and accounts of meetings with Ruto at State House and other locations.
According to The Star, Chivayo’s relationship with Ruto first attracted significant public attention in January 2025, when he shared photographs from the President’s Kilgoris residence.
He subsequently documented meetings at State House and other locations, including a January 2026 encounter at Sagana State Lodge and a June 2026 visit to Wajir State Lodge.
Chivayo frequently described his meetings with Ruto as “courtesy visits”, while his social-media posts were often effusive in their praise of the Kenyan leader.
In one post, he described Kenya as his “second home” and said his encounters with Ruto were “nothing short of impressive and extraordinary”. He also said Ruto had repeatedly encouraged him in his ambitions to invest in Kenya.
Another post described Ruto as a leader of “vision” and linked Chivayo’s proposed investment plans in Kenya to what he regarded as a favourable business environment under the President.
The language used by Chivayo suggested that he regarded the relationship as considerably more personal than a conventional businessman-president interaction.
In one of his posts, he thanked Ruto for treating him “as your own child”, while repeatedly invoking faith, grace and personal friendship in describing their encounters.
The Kilgoris moment
The most striking illustration came in August 2026.
Chivayo had travelled to Kenya for the traditional engagement ceremony involving Ruto’s daughter, Charlene Ruto, and Tanzanian entrepreneur Isaya Yunge. The event was held at the Ruto family’s Intonna Heritage Farm in Kilgoris.
After the ceremony, Chivayo filmed Ruto driving him and his wife towards the helipad where his helicopter was waiting.
The businessman could be heard expressing disbelief at the experience.
“I am being driven by the President of Kenya.”
He then exclaimed: “Being driven by the President of the Republic. Ah no, no. God is the greatest.”
Ruto could be heard laughing in the background. Kenyan media subsequently widely reported the unusual encounter.
Chivayo later shared images and videos of Ruto showing him around his extensive Kilgoris farming operation, including cattle and macadamia plantations.
From social gatherings to business conversations
The relationship also acquired an economic dimension.
Chivayo publicly spoke about plans to invest in Kenya through his business interests. In one of his posts, he said his company had moved towards implementing a US$200 million investment ambition in Kenya, while linking the plans to his repeated engagements with Ruto.
By September 2026, the relationship had again attracted attention after Ruto hosted Chivayo for a lengthy meeting at State House.
People Daily reported that Chivayo spent nearly three hours with the President and subsequently spoke publicly about his investment ambitions in Kenya. The businessman also used the occasion to praise Ruto’s leadership.
His name had meanwhile surfaced in Kenyan business discussions, including reports concerning proposed infrastructure investments and the planned modernisation of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
That combination — personal access to the President, invitations to private family occasions and discussions around major investment ambitions — made Chivayo an increasingly recognisable figure in Kenya despite being a Zimbabwean businessman.
A businessman surrounded by controversy
Chivayo’s rise was, however, accompanied by controversy in Zimbabwe.
He was convicted in 2004 of theft by false pretences and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment, according to Zimbabwean newspaper The Herald.
He later became associated with major state contracts, including energy projects, and faced further legal and corruption-related scrutiny over some of his business dealings.
His business dealings and political connections have continued to attract scrutiny in Zimbabwe, including allegations surrounding government contracts.
A Zimbabwe Financial Intelligence Centre report published in connection with a South African investigation also identified Chivayo in relation to transactions involving a company and alleged election-related procurement concerns.
Those allegations should be distinguished from proven criminal findings.
At the same time, Chivayo cultivated an image of extraordinary wealth, displaying luxury vehicles, private aircraft, expensive properties and high-profile relationships with political and business figures across Africa.
The Associated Press noted that he was particularly well known for his close relationship with Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his interactions with other regional leaders.
The final chapter
There is therefore a striking irony in Chivayo’s final public chapter in Kenya.
Only weeks before his death, he was celebrating the privilege of being driven by a sitting African president to his private helicopter.
He had described those three kilometres in almost reverential terms — as an experience that wealth alone could not buy.
Now, that helicopter journey has acquired an altogether different significance.
The circumstances of Wednesday’s crash in Marondera remain under investigation.
Zimbabwean police said the aircraft went down at about 5pm with six people aboard, while government spokesperson Nick Mangwana confirmed that there were no survivors.
Authorities were expected to release the confirmed identities and further details as investigations continued.
For Ruto, the death removes from his orbit a businessman who had become a conspicuous presence around the Kenyan presidency — appearing at State House, visiting the President’s private residence and family functions, discussing investment ambitions and publicly describing the President in intensely personal terms.
Whether the relationship was primarily personal, business-oriented, diplomatic or a mixture of all three remains a matter for the documented record and the parties themselves.
What is beyond dispute, however, is that Chivayo had secured an extraordinary degree of public visibility alongside Ruto — culminating in that now widely remembered three-kilometre drive to his helicopter.
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