Africa-Press – Zambia. The Mongu High Court has found former PF Deputy Secretary General Mumbi Phiri and her co-accused Shebby Chilekwa with a case to answer. This is in a matter in which the two are accused of murdering a UPND supporter, Lawrence Banda, during the council chairperson by-election in Kaoma District in 2019.
The matter has since been adjourned to December for the next session where the two are expected to defend themselves. Ms Phiri and her co-accused Shebby Chilekwa pleaded not guilty to a murder charge of United Party for National Development (UPND) cadre Lawrence Banda.
The two who have been in incarceration without trial for over eight months finally had their day in court were they pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Ms Phiri was in arrested in February together with Mr Chilekwa over the murder of Mr Banda but had not been in court since despite pleas from various stakeholders to have her taken to court.
Early this week, A state witness , Donald Malimba 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 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. Mrs. Phiri and Mr. Chilekwa are represented by Makebi Zulu, Charles Changano and Jonas Zimba from Makebi Zulu and Associates.
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