THE Supreme Court sitting in Ndola has upheld the death sentence of a 59-year-old village headman who was convicted of murder and aggravated robbery by the Kabwe High Court.
The court also confirmed a 35-year sentence of a 47-year-old peasant farmer of Luangwa District who was convicted of defiling a five-year-old girl.
Supreme Court justices Philip Musonda and Gregory Phiri ruled that the court could not interfere in the sentence as there were no mitigating circumstances in both the murder and robbery charges.
This was when they delivered judgment yesterday in the appeal case of headman Patson Hin’gandu of Chief Liteta’s area in Chibomba District, who murdered Kina Kayanda on October 7, 2006.
Hing’andu had appealed to the Supreme Court on both his conviction and sentence by the High Court.
In count one, he murdered Mr Kayanda while in the second count he robbed Mr Kayanda of a solar inventor and K5 million cash.
Facts of the case were that Mr Kayanda was attacked at his house where he was sleeping with his younger brother around 01:00 hours on the material date.
Hing’andu with other unknown people broke the door to the house and Mr Kayanda was dragged outside the house where he was shot. His brother managed to run away.
Hing’andu was identified by Mr Kayanda’s brother and other neighbours who managed to see him as he was leaving the house of the deceased armed with a gun.
And Joseph Mumba had his 35-year sentence for defilement confirmed by the Supreme Court.
Mumba, a peasant farmer, had appealed against the sentence by the Lusaka High Court, which he argued was harsh.
He was convicted of defiling a five-year-old girl on April 4, 2006 but he readily admitted the offence and was committed to the High Court where he was slapped with the 35-year sentence.
But the court ruled that the fact that Mumba was a first offender could not persuade it to be lenient on him.
The judges said Mumba did not miss the fact that the victim was a child of tender age when he committed the offence.
In the same court, a marketeer who abducted a 13-year-old girl and kept her locked up in his house for 10 months where he repeatedly defiled her until she became pregnant had his 15-year sentence substituted with a 20-year sentence.
Godfrey Siakangila, 34, of Miinga Farm in Kafue had appealed against his sentence by the Lusaka High Court.The court ruled that in its view, that was an aggravating circumstance which called for a higher sentence than the 15-year sentence meted out by the high court.
[Times of Zambia]
This is wonderful, thou shall not get away with crime. Murderers must be entertained at all cost because they are prone to recommitting the crime. Defilers must know that they are emotionally killing someone when the pounce on those innocent kids who are defenseless. The years slapped on them is even short they should been given life imprisonment. This is good reading to see the criminals getting punished for the wrongs they have committed even if it has taken so long. Kudos to the courts!
People used to get away with these kind of crimes, but now there is no where to hide for sexual deviants.
These headmen do all sorts of things and get away with them. Umfwiti, land grabbing, illegal sale of land, rape, adultery, gun running, murder, assault, defamation of character, theft, cattle rustling, illegal royalties, slavery, growing and trafficking mbanje etc. These human beings must be monitored seriously by the goverment and law efforcement agencies. The villagers don`t seem even to know their rights. Ni ba headman, so pasa ulemu even when it is an illegal act.The chiefs, if not accomplices, are too distanced from the so many headmen in their chiefdom. Govt, NGOs, police, DEC there is a lot more evil happening in villages committed by village headmen.
ok. no wonder we saw armed police escorting a kasalanga in ndola on tuesday heavily guarded. I can wish them a quick recovery of their souls and that they seek forgiveness from God.
They all deserve it. Criminals of the worst kind!!!
such kinds of acts should not be tolerated..
Thumbs up to the justice system. These criminals deserve what they got.
Have you noticed that the Zambian Justice System comes down hard on poor people? Why is Dr Musonda not on death row? What about the Chinese who defiled young girls in Luanshya? The white man in Kalulushi? Don’t “thumbs up” them until they start meting out equal justice to all offenders.
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