Former Security Minister Charged With Terrorist Financing Over Alleged K3.9 Million Plot

A Malawi court has been thrown into the spotlight after the State formally charged former Minister of Homeland Security Ezekiel Ching’oma and Gracian Lungu with terrorist financing, one of the gravest offences under the country’s criminal law.

Senior Resident Magistrate Bracious Kondowe told the court that prosecutors allege Ching’oma transferred K3.9 million from his Centenary Bank account into a National Bank of Malawi account belonging to Lungu, money the State claims was intended to fund criminal activity aimed at destabilising public order.

According to the charge sheet, the funds were allegedly meant to facilitate the abduction of human rights activist Sylvester Namiwa, who at the time was mobilising protests. The prosecution argues that the alleged financing was part of a broader scheme to silence dissent through criminal means.

Magistrate Kondowe said the State alleges that Ching’oma committed the offence over a prolonged period, between 9 December 2024 and 7 June 2025, raising the stakes of the case by suggesting sustained planning rather than a single transaction.

The court heard that the alleged offence falls under laws governing terrorist financing, which criminalise the provision or movement of funds intended to support acts meant to intimidate the public or coerce individuals through violence or serious crime.

The case has sent shockwaves through political and civil society circles, not only because of the seriousness of the charge, but also because it implicates a former Cabinet minister once entrusted with safeguarding national security.

The matter has been adjourned to a later date for further proceedings as the accused are expected to respond to the charges.

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