By Wendy Mkandawire
The Chief Resident Magistrate Court in Mzuzu has convicted and sentenced six men to seven years imprisonment with hard labour for kidnapping and assaulting Kondwani Jere, 35, over an unpaid debt.
According to Mzuzu Police Public Relations Officer, Cecilia Mfune, the court, through State Prosecutor Superintendent Bettie Msowoya, heard that the convicts committed the offence on January 9, 2026 between 10:00 hours and midnight at Chiputula Township in the city.
The convicts are Dumisani Kaunda, 29, Esau Kumwenda, 34, Atupele Khoma, 34, Lumbani Mbewe, 26, Jack Tambala, 37, and Charles Chamdothi, 23.
According to Mfune the court heard that in December 2025, the victim, a nurse at St John’s Hospital in Mzuzu, received K11,800,000 from Kaunda, who was then working with FDH Bank in Chitipa, for business purposes. The money was not repaid as agreed.
On January 9, 2026, Kaunda traveled from Chitipa to Mzuzu to recover the debt and engaged the other convicts to assist him.
At around 10:00 hours, Jere was apprehended in Mzuzu City Centre and forcibly taken to Chiputula Township, where he was detained in an unfinished house after it was discovered that he did not have the money.
While in captivity, the convicts assaulted the victim and poured unidentified substances mixed with water on his body, causing his skin to peel off.
Police officers later rescued Jere and referred him to Mzuzu Central Hospital for medical examination and treatment.
The six were charged with conspiracy to commit a felony and kidnapping. They pleaded not guilty to both charges. The State paraded seven witnesses, which led to their conviction.
In mitigation, the convicts asked for leniency, saying they were first offenders. However, the State argued for a stiff punishment, citing the serious nature of the offence and the harm caused to the victim.
Passing sentence, Chief Resident Magistrate Godfrey Balaka concurred with the State that the offences were serious and planned.
He sentenced them to five years IHL for kidnapping and two years IHL for conspiracy to commit a felony, with the sentences to run consecutively.
