A 66-year-old village headwoman in Chieftainess Mwape’s area in Nyimba District, Eastern Province, has been murdered under unclear circumstances.
The deceased, identified as Ireen Soko, headwoman of Kalongo Village, was found dead in the early hours of Monday, March 16, 2026.
Eastern Province Police Commanding Officer Robertson Mweemba confirmed that the body was discovered by passersby around 06:00 hours, dumped in a nearby garden.
According to police, the body was lying in a pool of blood and had a deep gash above the left eyebrow as well as another cut on the forehead.
Mweemba said the victim’s daughter reported hearing a disturbance at her mother’s house around 02:00 hours on the same day and later saw three unknown individuals fleeing from the scene.
Investigations led to the recovery of blood-stained clothing believed to belong to one of the suspects, identified as Paulo Sakala.
Police said Sakala admitted ownership of the clothes during interrogation and indicated that he acted together with another individual.
A manhunt has since been launched for the second suspect, who remains at large, while investigations into the matter continue.
Murders in this country are just becoming too much. We are slowly becoming another South Africa. What is the crime prevention strategy for this. If it is confidential, may we atleast know if it does exist and that it is helping