Katengeza maintains her innocence in K106m case: ‘Kalonga used me’

Businessperson Angela Katengeza, who was co-charged with a former assistant director of tourism at Ministry of Tourism, Leonard Kalonga in the K105.9 million money laundering case is maintaining her innocence by sticking to ‘not guilty’ plea despite Kalonga admitting wrong-doing.

According to court statement by an investigator in the Fiscal Department of the Malawi Police Service, Katengeza alleges Kalonga used her to siphon K105.6 million from government.

Senior superintendent Gerald Chiwanda told the court that a caution statement he recorded from Katengeza indicated that Kalonga borrowed her certificate from the National Construction Industry Council which was normal according to her.

“After a month, he came with a cheque worth K32 million (about $76 190) which was deposited into my account. I withdrew the money and gave it to him. He came again with another cheque worth over K60 million (about $143 000), I deposited and withdrew and gave it to him.

”We agreed that I would get a commission after the third cheque, but to my surprise I heard that my name appeared at the Anti-Corruption Bureau as being involved in these cases,” said Katengeza in a caution statement.

Kalonga told the court on Wednesday that he recruited Katengeza’s company, Faith Construction, among others, to share the proceeds of fraud in the cashgate scandal.

He said Faith Construction later recruited Mchemani Construction as per instructions from then Ministry of Finance budget director Paul Mphwiyo.

High Court judge Fiona Mwale convicted Kalonga on his own plea of guilty and is yet to pass sentence but he is now remanded in prison.

But Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) deputy director general Reyneck Matemba, prosecuting the K105.9 million money laundering case, told High Court that Kalonga has been removed from case owing to his conviction.

“According to the law, it is unconstitutional to proceed charging any person on an offence he has already been convicted of. In this case, it is the same offence he was being jointly charged with Katengeza. That is why we had to file a new amendment,” Matemba said.

Kalonga was first arrested on October 17 2013 by ACB for allegedly conniving with different people to defraud government.