ZAMBIA. SUPREME COURT IMPOSES DEATH SENTENCE ON POLICE OFFICER

Patson Mwale, a police officer who killed a suspect in Lusaka, Zambia, was condemned to death by the Supreme Court following his appeal against the Lusaka High Court verdict in which he was sentenced to a 20-year jail term. Sitting in Kabwe, the Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Lombe Chibesakunda, Peter Chitengi and Dennis Chirwa dismissed the appeal by Mwale who was based at Emmasdale police station in Lusaka. The highest court in the land ruled that the trial Judge had erred by sentencing the officer to 20 years imprisonment for the murder of Ben Shatunka, a suspect.
"Looking at the provision of the law and what the learned trial Judge took into account to amount to extenuating circumstances, we held that the learned trial Judge misdirected himself in sentencing the appellant to 20 years instead of the deserved mandatory sentence.
"The sentence of 20 years imprisonment with hard labour is, therefore, set aside and in its place we impose the mandatory death sentence and order that the appellant be hanged by the neck until he is pronounced dead," read the judgment.
It was ruled that on May 24 in 1999, Mwale was assigned to handle a break-in case in which the deceased, Shatunka had been apprehended. After interrogations, Shatunka offered to lead police to a house where some more stolen items were concealed in George Township. Another officer accompanied Mwale and both were armed. The house belonged to Friday Mwanza, an accomplice in the breaking-in case.
While in the house, Mwale shot dead Shantunka, blowing his head off and shattering the entire skull. He had alleged that the gun went off as the deceased tried to wrestle the weapon from him. But Mwanza, who became a State witness in the resultant murder case, countered that the police officer had deliberately shot Shatunka at point-blank range.