Eastern Region police has registered a decrease in juvenile cases in the month of January 2018 as compared to December 2017.

Spokesperson for the region, Inspector Joseph Sauka, said in January, the region has registered a total of 65 children who were found on the wrong side of the law as compared to 77 cases registered in the month of December 2017.

“We (police) are doing fairly in the fight against cases to do with children in conflict with the law,an achievement which comes due to our interventions through Community Policing and our Child Protection Desk ,” Inspector Sauka said.

According to data from the Eastern Region Police Office responsible for Research, Planning and Community Policing, in January, 21 cases were registered in Mangochi, 19 in Machinga, 16 in Zomba and 9 in Balaka.

Out of 65 cases registered in January, 56 were males while 9 were females.

The statistics also revealed that only 10 cases were taken to court while the rest of the children were diverted to their guardians at police level.

However, Inspector Sauka called on general public and the organizations to join hands with the police in protecting the children who are vulnerable to criminal activities.