Africa-Press – Zambia. As Murder Suspect Nathaniel Barthram’s Life Reads Like the Book of Judges
Murder suspect Nathaniel Chinyeremike Barthram, 34, has left Zambia gasping with a mix of shock, disbelief, and grim laughter after he politely requested that police transfer him to a detention cell with air conditioning like that of the 5 star Hotel.
The request, described by one officer as “the most courteous hotel booking ever attempted in police custody,” comes as Barthram faces trial in connection with the murder of 22-year-old Enock Simfukwe Kasengele.
Barthram is jointly charged with his wife, the celebrated farmer and entrepreneur, ECZ Chairperson’s daughter Maria Zaloumis, popularly known as The Zed Farmer, along with three others. The group is accused of being involved in Kasengele’s suspicious death on August 17, 2025, at Kabwe Central Hospital, where he died after falling seriously ill in custody.
While some individuals initially pointed to natural causes, a postmortem conducted on August 20 painted a darker picture: Kasengele had suffered a blunt force head injury, brain contusion, and brain edema grim signs of violent trauma.
Yet, as if a murder case wasn’t dramatic enough, Barthram’s personal life has now spilled into the headlines like a soap opera out of the Book of Judges. A woman from Botswana, shocked by the arrest reports, surfaced online claiming that Barthram is in fact her legal husband.
“He is my husband. I am shocked to hear he is married,” the woman declared in a series of messages, stunned to discover that the “Nigerian man arrested in Zambia” was none other than her spouse.
If true, this revelation plunges the accused into a bigamy scandal, raising questions about just how many “households” Barthram was pastoring on the side. As one church elder wryly observed, “It seems Brother Nathaniel did not stop at multiplying loaves and fishes he multiplied wives too.”
What began as an alleged acid-attack plot has now ballooned into a tale of violence, betrayal, and family drama worthy of a biblical parable. As one observer put it: “First Cain killed Abel, now Kasengele lies dead, and Cain is asking for air conditioning while his wives argue online.”
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