A 26 -year-old peasant farmer yesterday walked to freedom after he was acquitted by the Kitwe High Court for allegedly murdering a 13-year-old girl and chopping her to pieces.
And a sombre mood characterised the packed courtroom when Harrison Chombaomba of house number 52, Chiwempala in Chingola, who was accused of murdering Abigail Namwinga, was set free by the court.
Chombaomba was accused of murdering the girl between November 5, and November 11, 2011 after she was reported missing on November 5, the same year 2011.
The body was found in Mutimpa area in a decomposed state and chopped into two pieces with the head wrapped in a chitenge material.
High Court Judge Isaac Kamwendo acquitted Chombaomba due to insufficient evidence against him.
Delivering judgment, Justice Kamwendo said from the evidence before him, no one saw the accused person commit the offence.
[pullquote]“I find that the prosecution has not proved the case of murder and I hereby set him at liberty,” said the Judge.[/pullquote]
He said it would not be safe to convict the accused person as there were some doubts in the evidence.
“I find that the prosecution has not proved the case of murder and I hereby set him at liberty,” said the Judge.
Mr Justice Kamwendo said there was no evidence of the instrument which might have been used to cause injuries to the victim.
The girl’s mother Florence Nambela, 43, had testified that on November 5, 2011 around 06:00 hours, her daughter, a grade nine pupil then, went to collect wild fruits, commonly known as masuku in the bush.
She said the girl never returned home and was found dead and decomposed in the bush.
Another witness Kelvin Mwape said he saw Chombaomba with the girl.
But Chombaomba denied murdering the girl and stated that he did not know her and did not know the people that testified against him.
He also said even though he was apprehended at a bar, he does not take alcohol.
The idio2 will kill again
INMOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY
Justice is for all. Let him enjoy the freedom. Freedom is sweet!!
JEESSUUSS!!!!!!!!!!!
THAT IS WHY IN SUCH CASES DNA TESTS IS EXTREMELY NECESSARY. THE COURT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN FINGER PRINTS OF THE ACCUSED AND TEST THEM AGAINST THE PRINTS FOUND ON THE DECEASED BEFORE BURIAL.
VERY SAD INDEED.
kegan i agree with u.we need proper investigations in ths country.
@Keegan, you always come up with your DNA stuff, you sound like you know alot about how to go about such….
Let me tell you, your Injustice Minister Kabimba can continue to fail & set criminals free. But with us, no one just walks free, TULEMULOWA, we try akalumba first, if it fails then insula.
Iwe it is not the work of the court to look for such evidence, the prosecution team in conjunction with the police, should have done thorough investigation to establish the killer.
Kegan, DNA on a decomposed body, may be. Finger prints on a decomposed body, quite difficult
It is not for the court to look for evidence …….the role of the court is to adjudicate based on the evidence before it……the police investigates and should have looked for the instrument used and taken finger print evidence…
Our police is still very far behind when it comes to invetsigations. They always do partial pieces of work. I wonder if they even know what a thorough invetsigation is, and they always mercy up when it matters most. Shame !!!!! That evidence before the court “sounds” like hear-say and the prosecution team goes to court with it, *****s !!
Poorly trained investigators and prosecutors. The judge should have sent the case back for investigations instead of closing it. Clear to me that science and technology still elude Zambia because of poor leadership which accepts ineptitude and ignorance as a way of life.
Zambian prosecutors are useless time and time again we hear of cases being discharged because the prosecutors did not do their homework
wait untill you find yourself on the other side of the law!!!!
Mutembo Nchito at it again
Its not about being the other side of the law. Its about people doing their duties professionally, without leaving stones unturned.
Do we are have counts of role in this country how can he set free a murderer like that shame kamwendo ****.the same murderer will kill your child **** where is government where is minister of justice, NGO’S please make sure that justice privel on this matter we are tired of this noncense lastly let me ask, is zambia a christian nation someone somewhere answer my question please.
We need to invest in DNA technology as it would put the suspects scientifically at the scene of the crime.It is not right for instance for UKWA to say he is not happy for politicians to seek medical treatment abroad.When his time of illness comes, he sneaks out to India for an operation that could be done at UTH .The tax payers money he spends as a medical tourist could be used to invest in DNA forensic laboratories that could help solve alot of cases like this one.
we are already working on the DNA lab for police forensic works.come january 2014 cases of these nature will be sorted out within a fraction of a second.right now we are computerising the records at national registrations card offices and we are almost through.Your finger prints on your nrc was captured using biometric system and updated.i assure you come 2014 DNA forensics will be operational.Experts in this field will be coming from usa to train our officers.
The Zambia Thought Police is only equipped for the harrasment of opposition politicians!
Stop blaming the police for all your failures in life!!! You are still young to still make it in life.firts work on your grade 12 results, then you can apply to join the police service young man.
In this age there does not to b a witness to a crimefor someone to convicted – the chitenge material could have provided substantial forensic evidence!!! I hate to think like this but cant help it to suspect that ba Judge Kamwendo bana badyesamo!!!
The burden of prove is on the prosecutor to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the man committed the crime. The prosecutor failed to produce evidence beyond reasonable doubt to find him guilty and the judge is 100% right to let the man walk free otherwise locking him up will be miscarriage of justice.
Stop blaming the judge. You cannot read and understand what others have said(written) above? Blame the investigation team. The police are to blame as well as the prosecution team. Because you are corrupt does not mean that everyone is corrupt. The judge did his job perfectly well to find this man innocent. You cannot send someone to Mukobeko on insufficient evidence. Remember pa zed ni “kill for killing”. So, if not careful, you can send someone to hang wrongly, which is even terrible !!!
A case must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. The reasons have been given for dismissing the case. No eye witness to the act and no murder tool located anywhere…
Using DNA evidence when no foreign material was found on the victim is a hard one. What’s worse, the accused knows none of the witness/victim though he could have been hired.
Anyway, there is doubt on this matter…
This man is guilty how came is the accused. I agree we need forensic experts in our criminal investigation team. The question is who murdered the girl
“The man is guilty because he was accused”?????????? how so john if you are accused then you are guilty?
yes peter the man is quilty.The fact that of all people in the country the police only picked on him tells a story.The man is quilty and the police are going to re-arrest him again so that he can be tried in a higher court.we are going to appeal,there is no way he can be set free.he already murdered some one and with him on the loose more lives will be lost!!!!
Inspector general zp, so you wanted every Zambian o be accused?
Knowing the Police they just picked a suspicious looking person near a bar so that they easily close the investigation. Guys lets not condemn Zambia court/Police in comparisons with which courts? Remember OJ Simpson.
I always think it is better to free a guilty person than convict an innocent person. The man could have been guilty but the court neede enough evidence to convict him that’s why the law is there to protect the people. Having said that, I agree that forensic tests should be carried out and worked on so that investigators can have sufficient evidence to make arrests. May our good lord comfort the people who are mourning especially her mother and may the girl sleep in peace.
Zambia Police must must be following acts or suspected acts of crime and do through invesitigations before taking cases for prosecutions in court.
The sad and worrisome thing about our Zambian police is that they are so politicised that they no longer work and think professionally . The diffrent between a professional police and a poltical police is that ,a professional police serve GOD and His people and GOD justifies that police.While a political police serve man as his GOD and THE TRUE GOD does not justify that kind of police.
Anyway courts operates on evidence.No evidence no jail sentence .It is as simple as that.Too many innocent people have had been jailed coz of judges who still go ahead to pass sentences despite concrete evidence lacking.
CHAIPA NGAKO
country men and women wherever there is a crime in zambia, the police are at liberty to arrest any suspicious looking person.so if you know that your looks are not good better stay in doors before the police pounce on you for murder,defilement,rape,treason,tresspass,arson,theft,public disorder,incest,sodomy and many more!!!!!
You fake IG. Stop wasting peoples time with your usless comments and poor grammer. “quilty, quilty!” Please just reply as yourself…
This is an event that has devasted the family of the girl and government should send the girls clothings to SA or anywhere alse so that they could be examined for DNA of the suspected man to rule him off completely.If Sata could UKWA be air lifted to SA for treatment,I dont see any reason why the clothes of this girl cannot be sent abroad for DNA analysis so that the case could be closed.Why cant we have our own labs that can do DNA and keep a database anyway?
This is an event that has devasted the family of the girl and government should send the girls clothings to SA or anywhere else so that they could be examined for DNA of the suspected man to rule him off completely.If UKWA could be air lifted to SA for treatment,I dont see any reason why the clothes of this girl cannot be sent abroad for DNA analysis so that the case could be closed.Why cant we have our own labs that can do DNA and keep a database anyway?
As intelligent as you sound. Who collect DNA from cloths that have been touched by so many people buried but the the fact that you used the term UKWA I forgive you.
he needs to be re-arrested
Hi, just wanted to say i liked this article.