A Hong Kong-based photographer who said Robert Mugabe's wife assaulted him last week was undecided about whether to press charges against Zimbabwe's first lady.

Known as the "First Shopper" in Zimbabwe for her luxury shopping sprees, Grace Mugabe was on a low-key visit to the former British colony, known for its gleaming luxury malls, with members of her family when she was photo- graphed by Richard Jones.

Mr Jones, who was working for the Sunday Times at the time, said she erupted into a "wild rage" and ordered her bodyguard to hold him down while she attacked him and punched his face.

"When I heard what the assignment was, of course it's not a regular assignment to try and tail Grace Mugabe," Mr Jones told Reuters.

"Everybody knows the reputation her husband has, but of course it was completely shocking when it happened. It came out of the blue," Mr Jones said of the attack which took place outside a luxury hotel on Hong Kong's Kowloon peninsula.

"There were a lot of cuts and abrasions and they're still visible," remarked Mr Jones who needed medical attention at the time.

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