By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –
A LUSAKA Police officer who is alleged to have shot dead a fellow officer at a roadblock in Chongwe, appeared in the Lusaka magistrate’s court yesterday for the explanation of the charge.
Clifford Mukonka, 47, is charged with one count of manslaughter.
Mukonka is alleged to have on October 25, 2016 in Chongwe negligently caused the death of Geoffrey Banda, a Police officer from Eastern Province who was on duty.
Mr Banda died on the spot while two other Police officers sustained injuries after the shooting, which happened on the Great East Road at a road block, a few metres from the airport roundabout in Lusaka.
Mukonka, who was manning the barrier on the road, mistook his fellow officers who were coming from Eastern Province for armed criminals he had allegedly been informed about.
When the officers who were coming from Eastern Province got to the barrier, one of them disembarked from the vehicle with a view to finding out whether there were officers at the checkpoint.
He went to open the barrier and it was at that point that Mukonka opened fire, shooting at his fellow Police officers whom he allegedly mistook to be part of the criminals he was earlier alerted about.
The matter has been allocated to magistrate Judith Chiyayika where the charge is expected to be explained to Mukonka.
Ms Chiyayika, however, sent back the matter to the chief resident magistrate for re-allocation on grounds that the matter happened in Chongwe and could not be heard in Lusaka.
In another matter where a Chinese man is alleged to have raped a fellow national yesterday failed to take off in the Lusaka magistrate’s court because the accused person is reported to be out of town.
Che Delona, 34, of house number 40, Millennium Village, is charged with one count of rape.
Che is alleged to have between December 22 and December 30, 2016 in Lusaka had unlawful carnal knowledge of Pei Ying, 23, without her consent.
Pei sustained bruises on her hands and private parts.
Che has since pleaded not guilty before magistrate Faides Hamaundu.
When the matter came up for commencement of trial, Che, who is on bail was not before court.
His lawyer informed the court that he had spoken with him and he informed him that he was out of town.
The court was also informed that Lusaka lawyer Kelvin Fube Bwalya had been joined as one of the prosecutors in the matter.
Ms Hamaundu adjourned the matter to February 6, 2017.