Malawi police zero in on key suspect in Njaunju murder case

Malawi Police Services  have zeroed in on most wanted   mastermind of the murder case of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director of corporate services Issa Njaunju, Nyasa Times understands.

Police made several arrests in connection with the July 2015 macabre murder of Njauju who went missing for two days before his body was found by sand miners half-buried and his official vehicle, a Totota Hilux double-cabin pick-up, destroyed in a different location.

Those who were arrested in connection with the murder are two police officers;  Sergeant Titus Thombozi who was attached to Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) at Mchinji border, but he was operating from Mchinji Police Station and  Christopher Naphiyo.

The first suspect to be arrested and charged with murder was Frank John who was found with Njauju’s mobile phone handset after donors stressed that the murder was an attack on the justice system and fight against corruption.

Post-mortem results revealed that Njauju’s body had bullet wounds in the neck and stomach.

According to sources an investigative unit at Police headquarters on the Njauju murder, the law enforcers have  since zeroed in on ‘kingpin’ of the murder.

“This murder case will now get to logical conclusion,” a source told Nyasa Times.

“We are pursuing the key suspect and expect some developments from this week.”

Several prominent figures have of late been arrested following the change of government from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to the Tonse Alliance administration.

Those arrested are mostly for crimes allegedly committed during former president Peter Mutharika’s administration.

They include Jomo Osman, a DPP councillor; Roza Mbilizi, deputy director-general of the Malawi Revenue Authority; and Gerald Viola, deputy chief executive officer of the National Food Reserve Agency.

Police said they could not make the arrests earlier because the political environment would not allow them.

“The environment at that particular time was not conducive for us to continue arrests,” said national police spokesman James Kadadzera. “Sometimes we do judge that if we do effect an arrest now, we may escalate issues politically as well as socially.”

Kadadzera said police were now free to arrest any offender regardless of political affiliation.

On Njauju, according to acting British High Commissioner David Beer, a UK-sponsored homicide expert already investigated and submitted a report to Malawi Police Service.