Minister of Homeland Security Peter Mukhito has come under sharp scrutiny after information gathered indicates that his statement to Parliament on the murder of gynaecologist Dr. Victoria Bobe does not reflect what is actually happening on the ground.
When he faced Parliament, Mukhito assured the nation that police had arrested suspects “directly connected” to the killing and that these individuals were “cooperating” with investigators.
But inquiries within the police service, as well as access to internal briefings, show that no such breakthrough has been made.
Instead, police have detained two homeless teenagers from Limbe, whose only involvement was picking up an empty money bag that the killers discarded near the Limbe Magistrate Court.
The teenagers 19-year-old Macdonald Tausi and 21-year-old Vincent Dzikolatha told officers they simply found the bag.
They even took police to the exact spot where they picked it up.
Yet, despite no evidence linking them to the murder, they remain in custody.
Police also picked up several known petty thieves from Bangwe and Chigumula during routine sweeps, but released them after questioning. None of them had any connection to the killing of the respected gynaecologist.
Other findings reveal that police are instead quietly pursuing other leads, including Dr. Bobe’s husband, who has already given a statement.
Officers have obtained his phone records covering the days leading up to the murder and are analysing his communication patterns.
These include frequent contact with a woman described in police notes as his lover, who has since been questioned. His business communications with several Malawians of Asian origin are also under review.
In addition, forensic reports confirm that the murder weapon was a 9mm Beretta 92 pistol. No private citizen in Malawi is licensed to own this particular firearm, making the gun’s origin a crucial piece of the puzzle.
With the investigation still far from identifying the killers, the Minister’s parliamentary assurance that “suspects are cooperating” has raised concerns about transparency.
At a time when Malawians are grieving the loss of a respected medical professional and demanding clear answers, such statements risk eroding public trust and creating a misleading sense of progress.
As it stands, the real killers remain unknown, the investigation is still taking shape, and questions continue to grow over why Parliament and the nation were told otherwise.