Terror is how residents of Mingale Village in Mpemba, Blantyre, described the scene that unfolded on Thursday afternoon when British national Nusrat Osman was rescued from an alleged hideout after hours of gunfire between police and suspected kidnappers.
“I have never seen or heard long gunshots like what we witnessed yesterday. The guns started rattling from 3pm up to midnight,” said villager Liness Magombo.
She said residents initially had no idea what was happening or what had triggered the eruption of gunfire from a fenced compound belonging to a man they just knew as their neighbour.
Unknown to them, police had mounted an intelligence-led operation at the compound to rescue Osman, 47, who had allegedly been abducted from Mount Pleasant in Blantyre six days earlier.
The operation ended with Osman being found alive, Deputy Inspector General of Police responsible for operations Noel Kayira who led the operation being shot and two suspected kidnappers killed.
Magombo said the prolonged exchange of fire left villagers afraid and uncertain about what was happening inside the compound.
The area, normally characterised by dusty roads, burnt-brick kilns, scattered trees and houses spread far apart, became a place residents feared to enter.
Inside the fenced compound was a small, one-roomed structure investigators believe was used to hold Osman during her captivity.
But the rescue operation came at a heavy cost.
A statement from Police Headquarters initially reported that four suspected kidnappers had been shot during the exchange of fire and later died in hospital.
But Inspector General of Police Richard Luhanga in a WhatsApp message last evening corrected the figure, saying only two suspects had been killed.
He identified them as Mozambican Marcolino Munguambe, 43, and Malawian Limbani Anthony, 44, from Mangochi.
However, by press time, it was still not clear whether the other two suspected kidnappers had been arrested or escaped.
The police statement said the suspects were armed with an AK47 rifle and a Girsan Regard MC pistol.
Kayira was also shot during the operation and was admitted to Mwaiwathu Private Hospital in Blantyre.
According to Luhanga, Kayira had undergone a successful surgery.
“He had a successful surgery and remains stable,” he said.
Osman was also taken to Mwaiwathu Private Hospital for medical checks following her rescue.
The hospital yesterday became a destination for senior government officials, politicians and businesspeople visiting Kayira.
First Vice-President Jane Ansah visited him in the morning.
Minister of Homeland Security Peter Mukhitho, who also visited Kayira, told journalists at the hospital that police had recovered mobile phones belonging to the suspected kidnappers.
He commended the police, particularly Kayira, for their dedication during the operation, and credited the community for providing information.
“This has increased confidence in the police and I am happy. We also have to commend the community for coming with tips and trusting. What we can assure the public is that police has the capacity,” said Mukhitho.
He said the bodies of the two suspects were at the mortuary and that withholding their identities was part of the ongoing investigation.
An eyewitness said the owner of the compound had erected the fence in about a week.
Residents had also noticed different vehicles entering and leaving the property.
The witness said some people seen at the compound could not speak Chichewa, raising curiosity among villagers about who they were and what they were doing there.
When the Weekend Nation crew arrived at about 11am yesterday, the compound remained under police scrutiny.
A crowd had gathered around the area, including children who appeared to have stopped on their way to school to watch police searches inside the compound.
One vehicle reportedly linked to the operation was being loaded onto a flatbed tow truck.
The rescue ended six days of uncertainty after Osman was abducted by four men using a grey Nissan Dualis, registration number CA 6956, in Mount Pleasant suburb, Blantyre, last week.
