Exposed! Acting ACB Boss Chembezi Accused of Sacrificing Officer Robert Mkandawire Over Failed Chithyola Arrest

Fresh details emerging from inside the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) suggest that Director General Gabriel Chembezi may be attempting to shift blame onto senior investigations officer Robert Mkandawire following the failed arrest of former Finance Minister and Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Simplex Chithyola Banda.

Mkandawire was interdicted this week over allegations that he neglected duties during an operation to arrest Chithyola Banda on May 8.

However, multiple inside sources familiar with the operation have told Nyasa Times that Mkandawire followed instructions from top management throughout the failed mission and is now allegedly being used as a scapegoat for what insiders describe as a “serious leadership and operational failure” by the bureau’s top brass.

According to sources, the warrant to arrest Chithyola Banda was only received around 15:26 hours on Friday. Concerned about the legality and practicality of executing the warrant late in the day, Mkandawire reportedly sought guidance through ACB Director of Legal Services Mr. Khunga on whether the operation should proceed.

“He did not act independently. He asked for direction and was cleared to proceed by management around 4 PM,” said one source familiar with internal communications.

Sources say the operation was poorly prepared from the start.

Four ACB officers were allegedly sent to arrest one of the country’s most senior opposition politicians without police escort or security reinforcement.

“They were sent into a politically charged environment completely exposed,” another source said. “How do you send investigators to arrest the Leader of Opposition at night without security and later blame them when things go wrong?”

According to accounts from officers familiar with the incident, the team found Chithyola Banda at his residence surrounded by politicians, supporters, and private security personnel.

Chithyola Banda reportedly protested the timing of the arrest and described it as political persecution before calling his lawyer, George Kadzipatike.

Sources say officers were briefly asked to step aside to allow consultations between the suspect and his lawyer. When they attempted to resume the arrest process, Chithyola Banda had allegedly disappeared while bouncers began blocking the officers from accessing parts of the premises.

The situation reportedly became increasingly hostile.

Inside sources claim some individuals at the residence threatened the officers and referenced slain ACB officer Issa Njaunju, who was murdered while investigating corruption cases.

“The officers genuinely feared for their lives,” said one insider. “They requested police reinforcement because the environment had become dangerous.”

Police officers reportedly arrived around 9 PM, not to assist with the arrest itself, but merely to provide security for the stranded ACB team.

Despite this, sources say Chembezi instructed Mkandawire and his team to remain at the residence until Chithyola Banda resurfaced.

“They stayed there for hours waiting for further direction from headquarters,” another source said. “At some point they were hungry, exhausted, their phones were dying, and they kept reporting back to management.”

The team was only instructed to leave the premises around 11 PM after the suspect failed to return.

In another development likely to intensify scrutiny on the bureau’s handling of the matter, sources say Chembezi instructed Mkandawire the following morning to draft a press statement anticipating Chithyola Banda’s arrest — despite the arrest not having taken place.

“That was highly irregular,” said one source. “Investigators do not normally draft press statements, and you do not issue statements announcing arrests before suspects are actually arrested.”

Sources insist Mkandawire nevertheless complied and submitted the draft statement to management.

Meanwhile, multiple inside sources have further alleged that tensions between Chembezi and Mkandawire did not begin with the failed arrest operation.

According to insiders, Chembezi has allegedly long expressed discomfort with Mkandawire remaining at the bureau and has reportedly confided to various individuals within professional circles that he would do “anything possible” to have the senior investigator removed from the institution.

Several sources now believe the failed Chithyola operation may have provided an opportunity to push Mkandawire out.

“This interdiction did not start today,” claimed one insider. “There has been bad blood for some time. What happened with the Chithyola operation appears to have given management the excuse they were waiting for.”

Critics inside the bureau now argue that the interdiction is less about misconduct and more about protecting senior leadership from embarrassment after the high-profile operation collapsed.

“The operation failed because of poor planning and poor leadership from the top,” said another insider. “You cannot abandon officers in the field without security, without logistical support, and then punish them afterward to save face.”

Sources also point to another unresolved issue involving Mkandawire. Two years ago, the senior investigator was reportedly assaulted while carrying out official duties. Insiders claim that despite the incident, the bureau has allegedly failed to adequately support or compensate him.

“This is an officer who has risked his life for the institution,” said one source. “Instead of protecting him, they are now throwing him under the bus.”

The failed arrest was eventually overtaken by legal developments after Chithyola Banda obtained a court injunction restraining the execution of the warrant.

Neither Chembezi nor Mkandawire had responded to requests for comment by press time.

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