Eight months after the High Court in Mzuzu sentenced six men to 15 months’ imprisonment for unlawfully wounding a Karonga man, police have yet to execute warrants for their arrest, raising concerns over enforcement of court orders and respect for the rule of law.
The six were convicted on December 19 2025, after High Court Judge Justus Kishindo overturned a lower court decision that had fined them for assaulting Kalikeni Mwafulirwa in Karonga on November 26, 2024.
They are Ryack Kamwendo, 54, Albert Mwafulirwa, 43, Loswel Kandonga, 39, all from Mtangala Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Wasambo; Lester Kalua, 43, and Emmanuel Salala Mwafulirwa, 45, both from Njalayankhunda Village; and Boli Gondwe, 39, of Chagoma Village.
On June 11 2025, the Uliwa First Grade Magistrate’s Court convicted the six of unlawful wounding contrary to Section 241 of the Penal Code and fined each K120,000, with K100,000 awarded to the complainant and K20,000 paid to the State.
However, the State Advocate’s Chambers in Mzuzu, representing Mwafulirwa, successfully appealed against the sentence. Justice Kishindo quashed the fines as the sole punishment and sentenced each convict to 15 months in prison, effective from the date of their re-arrest.
Court documents show that the six, who were members of a community policing forum at Kapwere Market, apprehended Mwafulirwa on suspicion of theft. While in their custody, they tied his hands and feet before assaulting him with sticks and pieces of timber.
Medical records indicate that Mwafulirwa suffered severe back pain, extensive wounds on both buttocks with necrotic tissue, soft tissue injuries and a septic wound. The injuries left him unable to cultivate his garden during that farming season.
Justice Kishindo said the case involved several aggravating factors, including abuse of authority, group violence, use of weapons and the seriousness of the injuries.
He ruled that the magistrate erred by imposing only a fine because unlawful wounding does not provide for such a punishment.
“Imposing a fine where the law does not provide for one, especially in felonies, gives the impression that people with money can get away with crime or that courts favour the rich,” Kishindo observed.
The judge questioned how the lower court arrived at the K120 000 fine and K100 000 compensation without assessing damages, saying compensation for personal injuries was better handled through civil proceedings.
Although the convicts were first offenders, Kishindo ruled that imprisonment was justified because they had abused their authority as community policing members and inflicted serious injuries.
The High Court retained the fines already paid but added 15-month custodial sentences for each convict.
The court issued warrants of arrest on January 7, 2026, which were received by the Northern Region Police Prosecution Office on January 9. By January 21, the warrants had also been served on Chilumba and Karonga police stations.
The court directed police to arrest the six and produce them before it for committal to prison. However, none of the warrants has been executed.
When contacted, Northern Region Commissioner of Police Glinton Mitayi promised to respond but had not done so by press time. Police spokesperson Cecilia Mfune was unavailable.
The delay has triggered accusations that police are frustrating justice and undermining the authority of the courts.
The Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) Karonga Diocese said it has repeatedly engaged police over the matter after receiving complaints from Mwafulirwa’s family.
CCJP coordinator Obert Mkandawire said the organisation has been engaging Northern Region Police every month since March 2026 without success.
“After the police failed to execute the warrants, we have engaged them every month at regional level, but nothing has happened,” he said.
Mkandawire said CCJP volunteers have provided police with information on the whereabouts of the convicts.
As of July 22, 2026, he claimed five of the six were still operating businesses, drinking and moving freely in Njalayankhunda, while one was believed to have travelled to South Africa.
He said police inaction undermined the rule of law and sent a dangerous message that court orders could be ignored.
“Maintaining law and order is complex, but that does not exempt the police from accountability or justify failure to enforce a lawful court order,” he said.
CCJP petitioned the Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) on January 30, 2026, seeking intervention.
In its petition, the organisation described Mwafulirwa’s ordeal as traumatic, saying he had been left almost incapacitated and unable to provide for his family after receiving 100 lashes—50 on each buttock.
“Kalikeni underwent a horrible experience that requires justice. Therefore, we seek the immediate intervention of MHRC given the gravity of the matter,” reads the petition.
Mkandawire said CCJP had also documented alleged continued intimidation and rights violations against the victim’s family by some of the convicts.
“The police cannot choose which court orders to obey. No one is above the Constitution,” he said.
MHRC executive secretary Habib Osman confirmed receiving the complaint and said the commission had started following up the matter with relevant authorities.
