By Dickson Jere
An 18 year old boy staged a lone robbery in the village of Petauke. He attacked a woman – Mirriam Malunga – in the night at her house where she was keeping funds for Village Banking. He walked away with K300 cash which was in the cashbox. The woman recognized the boy and reported him to the police the same night.
The police advised the victim to sleep at an alternative place that same night and seek medical attention the following day. However, the woman went back home. Unfortunately, the boy returned at midnight and strangled her to death!
This was the jaw dropping case before the Chipata High Court few weeks ago. Judge Dancewell Bowa found the boy guilty of the two offenses – murder and robbery.
A postmortem showed death by asphyxiation as a result of strangulation. The boy also led the police to the thicket where he hide the cashbox. The evidence was overwhelming.
“I would in the premises find that the prosecution has proved the case beyond all reasonable doubt. I find the accused guilty of the offence of murder and I convict him accordingly,” Judge Bowa ruled.
However, the Judge was faced with a legal conundrum as to which punishment was appropriate to give the young murderer given the current law that protects children below the age of 19 years.
Having agonized, the Judge sentenced the boy to one year probation – which means he will go back on home and streets but only placed under supervision, which only requires him not to commit another offence during the period.
In short, the hands of the Court are tied by the law!
The boy could not be sent to prison because he was a “child” despite having shown no remorse when he was interviewed by the social welfare department. In the past, before the law changed, the boy could have been detained under the President’s Pleasure and only released when he has fully reformed.
Now, this is where the debate should be about the new Children Code Act and the need to realign some of the provisions to our situation. Most junkies when arrested, they claim to be below the age of 19 years so that they cannot be detained by the police. The law simply protects children regardless of their criminality!
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There is need for Parliament to relook at this law and see how it can be adjusted to suit our unique circumstances that is prevailing with junkies and other criminality by children.
In this case, the boy literally walked “scot-free” on two serious offences of murder and robbery.
Read details in the case of The People v Abraham Phiri HP/01/2024 and Judgment delivered on 25th January, 2024.
NB: The Boy could not be sent to an Approved School or Reformatory Prison because he is now 19 years old and those only admit children below 19 years old.
