Jailed 7 years for sexual assault
The First Grade Magistrate’s court in Malawi’s eastern district of Balaka has sentenced a 28-year old-man to seven years imprisonment with hard labour for defiling eight year-old-girl.
Police Prosecutor Sergeant Elias Chitsulo told the court that the suspect, Elias Kaluza defiled the standard 1 school girl on 23rd May at Malukula village in the district, contrary to section 138(1) of the Penal code.
Chitsulo said on this day the victim arrived home from school only to find the suspect at home as he was moulding bricks for the victim’s parents and after the suspect saw that the victim was alone, he took the girl to the near-by bush where he defiled her and gave her K20.00 note and threatened to kill her if she reveals.
“After some hours, the victim started feeling abdominal pains and this made her to report what happened to her parents who in turn reported to Phalula Police Unit who arrested the suspect,” said Chitsulo.
Medical report from Balaka District Hospital revealed that the girl was really defiled.
The suspect pleaded not guilty to the case of defilement but the court found him with a case to answer after Police paraded five witnesses including the Investigator Detective Constable Paul Kapumila and the medical officer.
In mitigation, the suspect asked the court to forgive him since he is a first offender and looks after his family and his aged parents.
But the state quashed his mitigating factors and asked the court to give a stiffer, custodial sentence saying that the case committed is serious and these cases are rampant in the district hence the need to give offenders stiffer sentences so as to deter would be offenders.
Passing judgement, First Grade Magistrate Damson Banda concurred with the state that these cases are becoming rampant in the district and that the girl child can only be protected if offenders are given stiffer sentences.
He therefore sentenced him to seven years imprisonment with hard labour and said he has given him such a sentence so that it should be a lesson to him and would be offenders.
Elias Kaluza who has a wife and three children comes from Malukula village, Traditional Authority Nkaya in Balaka district.
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