Mambwe cops arrest chief Nsefu’s retainer for murder

Mambwe cops arrest chief Nsefu’s retainer for murder
By Christopher Miti in Chipata
Sun 30 May 2010, 03:30 CAT

POLICE in Mambwe District have arrested senior chief Nsefu’s retainer for hitting his friend to death with a pounding stick.

Eastern Province police commanding officer Mary Chikwanda said chief Nsefu’s retainer John Nkhata had been arrested in connection with the murder of Miliyoti Mwale, popularly known as Saddam.

She said Mwale died on Wednesday last week, two days after he was hit with a pounding stick.

“This man who is from Retainers Compound died on Wednesday around 05:00 hours after being hit twice with a pounding stick on Monday,” she said. “The deceased was hospitalized at Nsefu clinic for two days but later sneaked out of the hospital and died at home.”

She said Mwale’s body had no physical injuries but police suspected internal injuries.

Chikwanda said the retainer was first charged with assault and later slapped with murder.

Nsefu ward councillor Daiman Mphasi said the two were allegedly drinking beer together before they differed.

“I am told these people were drinking Tujilijili and Chibuku ‘scad’ before they differed and hit each other with a pounding stick. I would urge the people here to avoid drinking beer to the extreme,” Mphasi said.
Mphasi said burial had been delayed because there was confusion over the matter.

A source from Mambwe said Mwale died in the early hours of Wednesday but his relatives had refused to bury him because they wanted a proper explanation of what transpired.

“I don’t know what is happening because his Mwale’s relatives have come a day after his death from Mwanya area and they wanted to bury the deceased in Mwanya. So there was like a standoff between his family and the people from here Nsefu area because others are saying the body should be taken to Chipata for postmortem,” the source said.

However, the source said Mwale was buried without carrying out a postmortem.