By Victoria Picardo
An 87-year-old granny from the area of Senior Chief Nankumba in Mangochi was Monday morning brutally murdered allegedly by irate community members on accusations of witchcraft.
Police in the district have confirmed the incident, identifying the deceased as Alista Makondetsa from Chizula Village in the area of Senior Chief Nankumba in Mangochi.
Mangochi Police Station Deputy Public Relations Officer, Sub-Inspector Amina Tepani-Daudi said three suspects have been arrested in relation to the murder while two others are on the run.
Daudi said since 2014 the mother of the suspects had been battling with a neck tumour and that after seeking medical treatment from public hospitals and traditional healers, one of the suspects confided in the others that Makondetsa was behind the ailment.
The police publicist said on Monday morning, the suspects, who are all related, mobilized themselves and went to confront the old woman who denied the allegations before she met her fate.
“Wrangles erupted which resulted into beating the old woman until she fainted,” said Daudi, adding: “The matter was reported to police who rushed to the scene and took her to Monkey Bay Health Centre where she was pronounced dead upon arrival,” explained Daudi.
Daudi said postmortem conducted at the hospital revealed that death was due to severe head injuries and internal bleeding.
The first three suspects who have been arrested immediately are Lifa Wasili, 20, Emily Michael, 20 and Amina lssah, 32, while the other two, Kassim Chinseu, 35 and Michael Chinseu, 42, are on the run, according to Daudi.
Daudi said the suspects are expected to appear before court to answer murder charges contrary to section 209 of the penal code.
Meanwhile, the police have appealed to the general public to report to any nearest police any information on the whereabouts of the two suspects on the run.
She said all the suspects hail from Chizula Village in the area of Senior Chief Nankumba in Mangochi where the deceased also came from.