Malawi court jail dog-meat seller: Sentenced 12 months IHL

The Balaka Second Grade Magistrate court in eastern Malawi has sentenced a 31year old-man to 12 months imprisonment with hard labour (IHL) for selling dog meat.

The suspect Ishmael Jumbe was found selling dog meat to people last week, at Njerenje Trading Centre,

Police Prosecutor Constable Kester Mame told the court that the Police received a complaint that the suspect sold dog meat in a form of “mang’ina.”

“The suspect in his caution statement confessed to have bought the dog at the price of K1000.00, cooked it and sold it at Njerenje Trading Centre as mang’ina, ” said Mame.

He said the suspect was telling people who were buying it that it was goat meat and said he has been doing this [selling dog meat]  since 2001 when he was at Mbayani in Blantyre.

Mame was arrested after a child to his neighbor revealed to have seen him skinning a dog at night time but when asked of what he has done with the meat; Ishmael confessed to have cooked it and sold it as mang’ina which is commonly known as “baya-baya” in his area.

In his submission before sentence, Police Prosecutor Constable Mame said dog meat is not supposed to be eaten “as per our culture and what the convict did is a taboo to the society.”

In mitigation, Ishmael asked for forgiveness saying he has a wife and three children to look after and that the people who eat the meat had already forgiven him.

Second Grade Magistrate Victor Sibu said the convict was supposed to know his responsibility before committing this crime.

He therefore gave him a maximum sentence of 12 months 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.

Ishmael Jumbe comes from Kangaude village, Traditional Authority Nkaya in Balaka.