Africa-Press – Zambia. A state witness in the case in which former Patriotic Front (PF) deputy Secretary General, Mumbi Phiri, is charged with murder, Donald Malimba today led a team of defense lawyers and High Court Judge, Charles Zulu, to the crime scene where the alleged murder of Lawrence Banda took place in Kaoma’s Site and Service area in
Mrs. Phiri and former President Edgar Lungu’s barber, Shebby Chilekwa, are accused of having murdered Lawrence Banda, a United Party for National Development (UPND) cadre in October 2019 during the Kaoma Council Chairperson by-election.
The prosecution team visited two crime scenes within the Site and Service area which are approximately 500 meters away from each other. One crime scene was said to be the point where Banda was allegedly shot and killed while the other one was alleged to be where an attempted murder of the then UPND Kaoma District Chairman, identified as Chola Simwawa, was committed.
Mr. Malimba, who is also a Kaoma District Investigations officer, told the court that investigations he conducted revealed that the person who shot at Banda came out of the vehicle that was stationed at the scene he however did not name but was able to narrate how the suspect moved from where the suspected PF vehicle was parked to where the deceased and others were.
He told the court how difficult it was to get witnesses from the neighbourhood because no one was willing to testify for fear of being arrested by the police. Mr. Malimba further testified that all the information he had was from his own investigations through people who were at the scene.
But when asked by the defense lawyer, Makebi Zulu, as to whether the state witness brought an expert crime investigations officer at the scene at that time, Mr. Malimba told the court that no expert was brought.
At the second scene for attempted murder of Chola Simwawa, Mr. Malimba told the court that one empty cartridge was picked approximately 100 meters away from the UPND camp.
The court has since returned to Mongu for continued trial tomorrow at 09:00 hours. Mrs. Phiri and Mr. Chilekwa are represented by Makebi Zulu, Charles Changano and Jonas Zimba from Makebi Zulu and Associates.
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