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Former Malawi Justice Minister convicted in former Budget Director's attempted murder case

Xinhua, July 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Malawi High Court in Lilongwe, Malawi, Thursday convicted former Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister, Raphael Kasambara SC, and two others in the case of the attempted murder of the country's then Budget Director, Paul Mphwiyo, in 2013.

The court found the former minister and the two, Pika Manondo and Macdonald Kumwembe, guilty of conspiracy to murder and also found the other two guilty of attempted murder.

The attempted murder of the former Budget Director took place on the night of Aug. 13, 2013 at the gates of his residence in the capital, Lilongwe.

Mphwiyo was shot three times at close range as he awaited the opening of his gate.

He was flown to South Africa for medication where a successful surgery was conducted on his face.

Mphwiyo implicated Kasambara and the other two in the case claiming he had personally seen them during the shooting.

After a rigorous court hearing and submissions over the years, Malawi High Court Justice Michael Mtambo Thursday handed down the judgement to the three before a jam-packed court and he has since revoked the bail of the convicts.

The former minister told journalists he "will appeal conviction" and " will overcome" in the end, adding that "the judge was very compromised".

But State Assistant Director of Public Prosecution, Enock Chibwana, has hailed the judgement saying the judge analyzed the submissions without any bias.

The shooting and attempted murder of the Malawi former Budget Director is directly linked to the country's historical plunder of public funds where billions of dollars were stolen.

Over 70 have since been arrested and the cases are still in court while over 10, among them top government personnel, have been sent to jail. Endit