The Senior Resident Magistrate’s Court in Kasungu has convicted and sentenced 35-year-old Samson Jasten Mbewe to 18-years imprisonment with hard labour (IHL) for defiling a 14-year-old girl contrary to section 138 (1) of the Penal Code.
According to Police Prosecutor Sergeant Bertha Daniel, the convict defiled the survivor in December 2023 when she went to Kaluluma forest to fetch firewood.
Sergeant Daniel said: “The girl went home she narrated the story to her aunt, on December 4, 2023, the victim together with his uncle started searching for him who was positively identified by the victim to be the one and he was taken to Ndonda Police Unit.”
Appearing in court Mbewe pleaded not guilty, a development which prompted the state to parade four witnesses to prove the case.
In her submission Daniel asked the court for a stiffer punishment to deter other would-be offenders.
Passing sentence Senior Resident Magistrate Eliya Zawanda concurred with the State and sentenced the convict to 18-years IHL as a deterrent to other would-be offenders.
Mbewe, hails from Matha Village, Traditional Authority Kapelula in Kasungu.
Additional reporting by Sub Inspector Joseph Kachikho, Public Relations Officer for Kasungu Police Station
