Teenager faces 2 murder charges
A 19-year-old boy, who was being kept at Chilwa Reformatory Centre in Zomba on an allegation that he committed murder in 2015 in Nkhotakota, is back in police custody, accused of committing another murder last Sunday.
The incident, which happened in Zomba, has left Malawi Police Service (MPS) dumbfounded. Eastern Region Police spokesperson Joseph Sauka in an interview yesterday said the boy, Blessings Mbavi, admitted in a caution statement he has given to police, murdering a seven-year-old boy by slitting his neck.
“He was being kept at the reformatory centre pending trial of the murder he allegedly committed in Nkhotakota in 2015. He was a juvenile then.
“While at this centre, he befriended a family of one of the security guards at the institution, Moses Sadick, aged 33. The accused also came close to the security guard’s son, and at times he could be given piece work (ganyu) for cash.
“On August 6, last Sunday, he went to the security guard’s house and the parents were not around. He found the sevenyear-old boy, Victor Sadick, and he lured him to a nearby bush,” Sauka explained.
According to the police spokesperson, Mbavi allegedly confessed attacking the boy and almost chopping off his head using a sharp object.
He also alleged that he removed his private parts and abandoned the body in the bush as he returned to the reformatory centre.
Sauka said when the parents returned home, they did not find their child and upon inquiring from neighbours, they disclosed that the last time they saw their son, he was with the suspect.
“The parents, in the company of other people, confronted Mbavi at the reformatory centre and he confessed murdering him. He led them to the nearby bush, the same day in the evening, where they found the body lying in a pool of blood.
“He was immediately arrested and is being kept by police. Postmortem at Zomba Central Hospital revealed that death was due to loss of blood emanating from the wounds,” Sauka claimed.
The deceased was in Standard 2 at Matawale Primary School, according to police. Sauka said Mbavi will face two murder charges one allegedly committed in Nkhotakota in 2015, and the fresh one.
He said they were still investigating to find out what the accused did with the private parts and the motive behind the murder.
Sauka has since appealed to parents not to trust anyone with their children, adding that the incident in Zomba was shocking and regrettable.
Mbavi comes from Nkhongo Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Kanyenda in Nkhotakota while the deceased came from Staubi Village, T/A Kumtumanji in Zomba, according to police.
