Chanthunya bail hearing Thursday
The High Court in Zomba will on Thursday hear a bail application by murder suspect Misozi Chanthunya who is being accused of murdering his Zimbabwean girlfriend Linda Gasa in 2010.
Gasa’s body, a 25-year-old Malawi College of Accountancy (MCA) student, was found buried under a concrete floor in a bathroom at Mwala Cottage in Monkey Bay, Mangochi, which allegedly belongs to Chanthunya.
Chanthunya, who is currently on remand at Chichiri Prison in Blantyre, escaped to South Africa in 2010 allegedly with the assistance of some law-enforcers after being questioned by police in Blantyre following the discovery of Gasa’s body at the cottage.
However, International Police (Interpol) arrested Chanthunya in January 2012 at a residence of a Malawian woman in Rustenburg in South Africa’s North Western Province. He has since been fighting an extradition battle with both the South African and Malawian authorities on the premise that he would face the death penalty when he comes to Malawi.
Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs spokesperson Pilirani Masanjala said progress has been made in the case since the arrival of Chanthunya in the country early last month.
He said: “There is a hearing [bail] that is happening on the 19th which is Thursday and his lawyer will make an application. But since he [Chanthunya] came last month, several things have happened in as far as the State is concerned.”
While in the rainbow nation, Chanthunya launched a bid to get bail through the High Court in Malawi.
However, in a ruling, Justice Chifundo Kachale dismissed the application, saying the local court had no jurisdiction to grant bail to a person held in another country.
Earlier, the bail application hit a snag after Justice Esmie Chombo recused herself, citing “phone calls” she had received in connection with the case.
