Sympathizers of former Labour Minister Austin Liato brutally descended on journalists at the Lusaka Magistrate Court on Thursday.
The assailants who were in the company of suspected MMD cadres led the onslaught on journalist after Mr Liato appeared for plea.
Meanwhile Mr. Liato has pleaded not guilty to the charge of receiving stolen property.
This is after Mr Liato took plea before Chief Resident Magistrate Joshua Banda.
Particulars of the offense are that Mr Liato between September, 1 and November, 24 allegedly received 2.1 billion Kwacha knowing it was feloniously obtained.
He has however been granted 50 Million Kwacha cash bail with two working sureties in their own recognisance.
Mr Liato has also been ordered to surrender his passport to the court as part of the bail conditions.
Magistrate Banda granted Mr Liato bail following an applications by defence lawyer, Nelly Mutti.
Ms Mutti contended that Mr Liato’s charge was bailable and that he was of fixed abode.
Mr Liato is remanded in custody until he fulfills the bail conditions.
[ZNBC]
Is it a felony or they are not sure what to charge him with?
It seems to me they are either not sure what to charge him with, or they are playing a game we may not enjoy watching.
These guys are jokers, first they have to prove that that cash was stolen. I was thinking they would first charge him with economic sabotage and money laundering!!!! lord help our law enforcement officers.
LIATO IS NOT ALONE!!! HE HAS TO TELL US HOW HE WITHDRAW SUCH HUGE SUMS OF MONEY, WHICH BANK AND BANK MANAGER AUTHORISING SUCH LARGE SUM OF MONEY, FROM WHICH ACCOUNT AND WHY?? HE KNOWS WHO IS INVOLVED AND THE JAILED SENTENCE SHOULD NOT BE LESS THAN THAT OF MURDOFF. MMD WERE RUNNING THE COUNTRY LIKE THEIR OWN FARM OF KINDERGATERN! PLEASE SCAN HIS TUMMY AND SEARCH RUPIAH BANDA AS WELL. THESE GUYS MUST FACE JUSTICE SO THAT THEY THAT POLITICS IS TO WORK FOR PEOPLE AND NOT TO ENRICH THEMSELVES. STUPID IDOTS!!!!!
Do we know if it was Liato who withdraw the money or more likely that the monies were cash payments to Liato for his part in nefarious or corrupt activities.
The money is Pocket CHANGE to MMD campaign funds. Liato was just the treasurer.
Chikamba Lyato wamona nomba ifyo wapuba. This boy Lyato is definitely not alone in this scandal thats the reason he is refusing to talk when is interrogated by officers. They are a big butch of MMD thieves involved…Mulecimona ba mbuli to make us suffer bcoz of your selfishness.
Why did the police take long to charge him. Do they really know what crime this guy has commited or they were just astonished to find K2.1bn burried in the soil? They need to be clear of the charge otherwise, this iddiot will go scot free. The charge of receiving money which he felonisingly obtained. the the f..uk is this? This guy need to remain in Chimbokaila full final stop!!!
Ba Liato
You remind me of Ringo Phiri who store K300 million from BOZ and was caught with two 25kg bags of “Hungarian” sausages because he didn’t have a plan for the sheets.
Our law enforcers need help, that’s why they loose even credible cases like this one.
Take this iddiot to prison and his fellow inmates can assist injecting him with insulin if he is worried of dying with diabetic. Infact those insokanda mulufuma needs to be tear gased so that he can return a normal belly.
where did he get the money from?……its a chain of thieves…we will wait…
recieving stolen money knowingly. he recieved from whom? liato shud tell us where he got the money? lets us finish mmd, they thot they were kings. why beat the media personel. those thags shud be jailed immidatly
this man is foolish is buried 2.1 billion but has failed to pay K50.0mill bail iyee this story is like the parable of the three servants
The way forward is to ask someone like myself, or any woman or even a whiteman to be incharge of accounts/departments or ministries that deal with money
By default and history will supprt me on this, a black man is likely to steal than us, whites etc
As well do a CRB check on Individuals if they have had similar transgressions in the past Ban them for life to come near money, simple
Like a prison even here in
Barlinnie in Glasgow constitutes of 35% of blacks, yet the population in this glasgow has less than 4% blacks, someone do the math
staggering
Thanks
Mushota, were you sexually abused as a child by a blackman? Maybe it was your father, maybe a family member. Or maybe you are a black man pretending to be woman who was anally abused as a child. Is that why you hate black men and decided to be a white man’s concubine? All these questions run through my head every time I see your comment. SMH
Let me see, Barings Bank, Enron, BCCI which led to the Bank of England being sued for over 1.2 billion pounds. Goldman & Sach insider trading scandal?? WOW wait here’s a really nice one the Brits stole Autralia from the Aborigines, They stole America from the Indians and WOW!! they even tried it with Africa as well.
Interesting how the usual LT MMD cheerleading squad members are sidestepping this “hot” potato.
CASE: Regina Chiluba Mwanza Vs the People of the Republic of Zambia
CHARGE: Knowingly Receiving stolen Property
VERDICT IN MAGISTRATE COURT: Convicted. The People Wins
VERDICT ON APPEAL IN HIGH COURT: Freed. Regina Wins
Does that ring a bell?
what you give, you get. mmd chaps were told time and again against crazy life style, did they listen?
Can Nelly Muti please consult me for advice? There is no case here
I say K50million as bail is too small for this guy. They should have put it at minimum a billion so that we know how much more he has.
you catch some one with k2.1 billion and you give him bail for k50million….this case will end\ with liato winning He should have been told to bring bail which is more than k2.1billion….WERE EVER HE IS HE LAUGHING AT THE WHOLE ISSUE AND POSSIBLY SECURING THE OTHER HIDDEN BILLIONS…OUR LAWS ARE SO SOFT…..
is nelly muti a zambian and a mother for that matter?
why is she defending a thief? does she has a heart for the suffering majority zambians? she should not have secured a bail for this thief so as to teach him a lesson. we need such thieves at chimbokaila. anyway what do you expect fron these lawyers, to them its party time.
Ba mature, that is her work! This has got nothing to do with her private life. She gets a living defending the accused. As it is Liato has no case and am afraid the law enforcement agencies were too quick to publicize the issue before getting facts about the issue. I just hope that they have a good case against Liato otherwise it will be very embarrassing at the end! Nelly is just doing her job. Innocent until proven guilty!
All that big belly. Like an 8 month pregnant woman. What do you eat?
This fat mammal is going to walk as there is more to this where that money came from, nobody wants to stir up the hornet’s nest, just bring in the Bank Managers on the day of withdraw and they will talk…I don’t think ZP, ACC, DEC, Sata want to know that side of the story.
Mulandu wash out!
How can those supporting the suspected criminal Liyato start threatening media. Is it not suppossed to be the other way round. Liyatos case attracts public anger and indignation, it is the public which is expected to want to lynch Liyato and not his puppets, people who probably benefited from his loot to threaten the media.
Liato Vs The People. If Liato’s sympathizers choose to abuse the press, The People’s reps for information, then the court should dare not grant Liato bail, unless they have chosen to be on Liato’s side. He has already provoked the people by hiding the people’s cash. Is Liato’s farm a registered bank? If not, allow this to be another charge, illegal bank in a farm. Mark all his friends – the media give us the photos of Liato’s friends so that we invoke citizens’ arrest in our own way.
ZMK 2.1 Bn = stolen property, 2 balls of dagger = 2yrs+ with hard labor no bail….bafikala! mulya bonse
We beat you on ‘fake’ gold scam last week. You’re dull Zambians to believe that gold was fake. Real gold was sold and the problem has been where to keep the proceeds. Your Sata knows we are not his match.
our government needs certified fraud investigators who can analyse these cases properly otherwise all thses chaps will go scot free. our law enforcement agents are good but i think they lack the required skills.
If what the ZNBC has reported is correct – that Liato is charged with receiving stolen properthy – then it means that he is not the owner of the money but somebody else. In other words, it means that somebody else stole the money somewhere and asked Liato to hide it for him and he agreed to bury it on his premises knowing that the money was stolen. But is that the position? I thought that the former minister was charged with being found in possession of property (in this case money) reasonably suspected to have been stolen or unlawfully obtained, which is different from receiving stolen property. In the former case, the owner of the property is not known.
Liato will be chewing other hidden cash when he is released. I am sure he will just lose 4Kgs when he goes to prison
another bill,that will be followed by court hearings then after pf goes he will be minister again.good luck liato thats the trend in africa no
Non-starter, just look at the charge, ‘receiving stolen property’.
Who stole? And, did Liato receive it?
Can the police please search this man,s Stomach. i suspect he has hidden another 1.2 billion.
ZNTB should be advertising Zambia as a Rich man’s paradise in its tourist brochures; Mafiasos, Drug dealers, White Collar Criminals wouldn’t have any problems stashing the illegally acquired loot in their cold rooms in this country provided they have their own 24/7 security and pay tax.
Zambian Law is for the poor petty criminals who steal 20pin groceries from store shelves….like I have said before if Mr. Sata is serious about fighting corruption he should  invest in specialist fraud training and equipment for the ACC, DEC all else you will end with cake of your face every time an Austin Liato walks free with a big smile.Ba Sata, swallow your pride pick up the phone and request assistance from British High commission and US Embassy to send people to train our shambolic coppers Asap.
Here is where we will see how inefficient or efficient the police force is. They were given a case on a silver platter via a tip off. Can they investigate? Scotland Yard would have been buzzing with detectives eager to make a name in such a case.
ladies and gentlemen, liato has no case to answer. To the extent that the police, the dec and acc do not know where the money came from, these guys are merely groping in the dark. Zambia does not have any election campaign funds disclosure law. Liato`s money could have been campaign money and am not sure he is obliged to disclose the source of the money. Infact, the Police, the DEC and ACC will have to prove that LIATO cannot, through his salary, allowances and income from his businesses in the last twenty (20) years, earn 2.1 billion?. Anyway, this is a lost cause and LIATO will have the last laugh. Meanwhile, a lesson to men is that don`t share all data/information with either your wife or girlfriend becoz they will sort you out when you least expect it.
Compatriots watch your health over this case for it may not yield to expectations! It used to be unheard of a million in ones possession (Millionaires) its history as the target now is to be counted among Billionaires, Kwacha Billionaires I mean. Liato’s crime is burying the money but so what if he doesn’t trust banking? What is 2 billion considering earnings; minister’s salary, MP gratuity, parliamentary committee and NCC sittings, “gifts”, farm produce sales? C’mon people I have no faith in getting the kind of justice I would want to see. I am moving away from this diversion of attention to satisfying my daily needs!Â
From whatever angle you look at it, Liato’s case is too incriminating. If he is such a rich person to even burry 2.1 billion petty cash, he still faces the charge of evading tax on that amount which in monetary policy is too clossal not to be taxed. Burying money in that style is characteristic of thieves who do not want people to know where they got it from. This is why the first charge slapped on him by the police is ‘being found in possession of stolen money’. As the case unfolds Liato will be able to furnish the court with facts about the money. But as things stand now, even a village court can convict Liato on the charge of burrying 2.1 billion kwacha.
All those trying to defend liato by fighting must be castrated
‘Receiving stolen goods!’ Iyeeee!
He walks free. This is the same charge that Mrs Regina Chiluba was in court for. You cannot charge a person of ‘receiving goods known to be stolen’ when there is no evidence that the goods have been stolen or when there is no complainant ‘missing’ the said goods. This country needs clever lawyers to be appointed Prosecutors. Perhaps we should have a system where every lawyer does ‘INTERNSHIP’ in the Office of the DPP for ONE year instead of wasting time at ZIALE.
REMEMBER, My Liato has the right to remain silent and the burden of proof that these goods:
1. Were stolen – is there a complainant?
2. Liato knew about them.
3. Liato RECEIVED them into his possession. Being buried at his land is not possession. Is there forensic evidence linking him to the trunkds?
Mr Liato does not have to say a single word.
If the money belongs to Liato, only the ZRA can have a say because he needs to declare income for tax purposes. Suppose it is Capital gain (i.e. he disposed of some assets) ZRA may already have had its cut.
#31 MELODY NDAIFULILA – LoooooL!! Indeed… he could still be carrying K1.2billion in his belly! But I just love my Zambia. In leaps and bounds we are getting there. Let’s be positive: these actions will reduce the temptations of people in public office to carelessly abuse public money knowing that they will soon or later be made to account. I think that the future for Zambia is bright —- as long as next time we vote in an intelligent team, not on the basis of tribe.
The issue here is for Liato to tell the nation how he acquired K2.1billion and why did he decide to bury such colossal sum of money if it was genuinely acquired.if he cant tell the nation, then throw him in jail for money laundering and tax evasion as charges.
Imagine this picture; if you were Austin’s farm boy, being a very good law abiding citizen you are, you go and tip off Z.P about your big boss’s hidden loot, not only do you come out unemployed and homeless. You are not rewarded for your services by GRZ since there is no rewards for whistle blowers you come out penniless worse off.Â
Ba Sata if you use internet please do something to correct this situation!!!
Yes I do agree we blacks have a thieving gene in us. Whether we like it or not we are different from bazungu who can still but with reasoning. Ringo Phiri stole millions of kwacha and just ended up buying sausages and sausages just to enjoy himself to the fullest. Police found him munching some of the sausages at his home in Chibolya. So thats what an African can do with stolen cash. Now coming to Liato burying over K1.2billion and sealing it with concrete slab. When was this cash ever going to be used even by him leaves a lot to wonder. I end here!
THERE IS NO CASE HERE PLEASE LET US STOP WASTING EACH OTHERS TIME
Liato will walk – I am so worried and disappointed with our investigative institutions. They failed to conduct the search and seizure operation in way that would have enabled them to gather enough evidence in their favour by not “capturing” the suspect first and conducting the search in his presence and asking him the relevant questions in the process. In that way they even lost out on the opportunity to know about bigger “cash crops” by luring him into immunity if he revealed more about others. For as long as he was’nt present during the search, does not himself permanently live at that farm and was not personally found in possession of the cash either on his person or a car he was travelling in, THIS CASE WILL BE A TOLL ORDER FOR THE STATE TO PROVE ITS CASE!!
@Mushota and Rudemonk I was going to insult you and question your intelligency but then insulting someone assumes that person has a minimum use of their brains to be able to understand the insult…….. I can not reasonably make the assumption that the 2 of you have brains at all. @ Mushota I hope you don’t ever come back to Zambia and I wish the Irish could adopt the Mormon (Utah) policy of no interracial dating/marriage so as not to pollute gene pools. @ Rudemonk…… Ringo Phiri is your measuring stick of an African? He was a security guard for a reason!
@ Mushota and Rudemonk FYI……. Dr Killion Munyama: Poland’s Zambian-born, bred MP
By Chibaula Silwamba
Fri 04 Nov. 2011, Post Newspaper profile
LT which suspected MMD sympathezers descended on journalists who you hadly describe from which media and what did these sympathezers do or say? You liers, just be objective and uphold decency and morals in your reportage. Zambians deserve to be informed correctly since journalism in Zambia is poor and of partisanship. The post is impotent almost deleted by PF. You have exchanged your ethics with jobs at state house and wonder of your conscience if ever you have any. Report with integrity about corruption which has beset Zambia for a long time and if investigative journalism is anything to go by in Zambia, corrupt and questionable people would not dare seek leadership in our country. Journalism would play a part in fighting this scourge and other vices.
However, due to greed among journalists and lack of self conviction most of them end up barking their masters voices and report issues to please their pay masters…SHAME ON YOU.
This case is interesting..I know Liato will say ‘ I dont know about the money’ ..then GRZ has to line up state wistnesses… so all the farm workers mus be in witness protection programme..Liato is on bail just to clear the evidence…That tammy can hide 10 skinny farm workers…
I wonder why the new commissioner of police did not plan to protect the scribes.Let her learn from the previous commanders, like the great Nguni of those days. I think it your lesson so that the police is not demonized due to your lack of focus.
So he can say he doesn’t know who put the money there. The burden is on the prosecutors to prove his involvement. All he has to do is do nothing – Donchi kubeba! We’re all learning fast.
Just release this man he is innocent, after all police dug 2.1 at his farm without his consent. Who knows the truth maybe they set him up, their was no money at his farm u crooks just carried trunks of money and pretend u dug the money from his farm. Why u did not call him to witness the digging?
they should have gone for pfost journalists..!Liato will come out clean on this..
CRIMINAL MINDED LIATO!
Liato is a money keeper
I did not realise until now that the best president Zambia has ever had was Levy Patrick Mwanawasa a Lenje by tribe from Chief Chamuka in Kabwe east.
That money this dude kept at his farm is not ven half of what I payed to get my MBA, CIMA, ACCA and soon PHD,please LT can this story go away.
Thanks
@# 50.In the event of Liato being slapped with an additional charged of money laundering, the burden of proof will be on him to prove his innocence under the DEC act which reverses the burden of proof. If it is just simple theft, no matter how much money is involved, the maximun he will be locked up for is three years simple imprisonment. Receiving and handling goods believed to be stolen will see him being away for three years. If he corperates and without political pressure being exerted on the adjudicator, he may walk as a first offender; because he will get a suspended sentence. Therefore, the only oone which may be tough for him of all the above is money laundering.
Tell that to the police, it must NOW be a minimal requirement that ALL law enforcement officers under go legal training, they must all have a minimam of atleast a diploma in law, purge this service on uneducated chaps who got in through nepotism.
There is no offence in keeping money under ground unless there is a new law that prohibits people to keep it in places they deem fit. Most people keep their mony under matresses, others in dug out holes in the wall called safes.What is important is to know that your money is in a place were no one can steal it. I keep mine in the pocket because it is a small amount.
Bushe bane bupuba bwashani ubu with our police system…and all involved in serving and protecting its citizens. The fact that the money was found buried at Liato’s farm makes it more compelling evidence to criminally charge him for possession of such a  colossal amount of money stolen or not. Liato should, in his own words, tell us where he got the money from, who signed for such a withdrawal from the bank and why it was buried…there are just too many why’s in this case hopefully the Liato  get locked up and for many years so a precedent can be set to discourage would-be looters of govt. money. Investigate fully knowing too well that there’s more to this case than meet the eye. Donchi kudabwa….hahaha  From Liato we move onto Siliya, Kunda, R B….,jail them jail them please!
Please church this story http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45499321/ns/us_news/#.TtgjXVa_PNo
Haha this guy is going to get away with it. The vampire called Nelly Mutti is very good at getting criminals off. The woman has no conscious.
But what’s wrong with Zambians do these people not feel for those dying in UTH because we cannot afford simple medication. Surely we are fools.
Liato is safer in custody.
Ba Mushota, were you sexually abused as a child by a blackman? Maybe it was your father, maybe a family member. Or maybe you are a black man pretending to be woman who was anally abused as a child. Is that why you hate black men and decided to be a white man’s concubine? All these questions run through my head every time I see your comment. SMH
It reminds me of a story in the Bible of a master who gave money to different servants and a foolish one buried it instead of investing it. Well, what can one say, Liato acted foolishly. Consequences of stolen money. The money might have been given to MMD by well wishers who wanted it to win but becuase no accountability was put into place. It was free for all. History has taught us that in any chaotic situation, thieves are the winners.
**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==**==
People how do you include a picture so that it appears in your post like the ugly one mushota dispalys?
@Jay Jay. Couldn`t agree with you more! There are a lot of people out there who will say but we will lose our jobs so why bother?
Remember how William Tekere Banda`s workers cried? To them Tekere gave them a livelihood no matter what.
Mr President, please reward people who whistleblow! I am telling you, even Dora will be caught with just more than bicycles!
I
Did someone complain of losing a 2.1 billion somewhere ?
Surely someone somewhere must have noticed a 2.1 billion missing. If not then its an open and shut case. Liato will be charged with keeping money from circulation , slapped a ka light sentence and get his money back. The chap has been a minister for 10 years. This money is peanut.
Bembas,are buzy posting stupid comments;but if it was one of their own he was to be glorified and telling other non stealing tribes wamona uwesu paliba amano.You just as stupid as your Sata he stole from Mezaf Money kept in his own account he was not charged for that,criminals like FTJ Chiluba,Xeviar Chungu,Katele Kaluba and many more bembas and easterns walk streets free ba kabolala *****s.
#67
Kangaroo Court! Your reasoning is not only shallow but is devoid of legal interpretation. Read the Zambian Anti-money Laundering laws and regulations. If you are found in possession of suspected illegally acquired money, there need be no complainant. If you cannot account for it through a meagre minister’s salary, you forfeit the money to the State and may even be imprisoned for the criminal offence of money laundering and/or receiving stolen property.
he also definitely violated the banking laws and should have been charged accordingly. how about taxation laws? has ZRA investigated or the want to tax him in retrospect?
It is amazing to see so many people defending this man…picture this happening in a developed country…unimaginable. Only in africa, greed before country.
Unbelievable the man could walk away free or with a silly charge,wish we had wise investigaters in zambia how can you go to search and find cash evidence at 3am?WHAT IF HE CLAIMS A BUSINESS PARTNER SENT THE MONEY AFTER BANKS CLOSED SO I KEPT IT IN MY ALREADY BUILT UNDER GROUND SAFE?Prove he didnt do it,ZP should have video recorded the safe place for even 24hours and raided him when banks are open,now they cant charge him correctly ha!!!!!we need 10% of ZP workers to have degrees in investigation work related field,for now lets lock him
It is clear that they don’t know what to charge him with. Maybe he won it in the casino while gambling. However, the state really has no case
i believe the charge is, “Knowingly receiving K2.1billion that is BELIEVED to have been feloniously obtained”. it implies that there is no proof that the funds were feloniously obtained… hence Bo Liato may even get off on a technicality.
K2.1billion is nothing… that could have been drawn in a single unaccountable imprest!!!
You were busy saying chewe chewe chewe chewe…….while kanshi it was chew chew chew chew hahahahaha! Don’t kubeba!
Shame on Zambian banks. They do not perform laundering tests but they are so keen on performing liquidity checks on middle income earners.
I used to be suggested this website by way of my cousin. I’m no longer certain whether or not this submit is written by him as no one else recognize such exact approximately my trouble. You’re wonderful! Thank you!