Malawi police still in dilemma over murder suspect Ali Kaka’s whereabouts

It is now two years since Malawi Police launched a manhunt for murder suspect Ali Kaka Chinemba following his escape soon after he was granted bail.

Kaka was arrested in 2015 for shooting to death 20-year-old Davie Kadzuwa after they picked a quarrel in Manja township in the commercial city of Blantyre over car parking.

After some time he was granted court bail but when his bail was revoked on the grounds that he was not attending court sessions, Kaka had already vanished.

After his escape, the Malawi Police Service (MPS) launched a manhunt to re-arrest him for the murder charges.

However, the police are yet to find the suspect.

In an interview with this reporter, Blantyre police public relations officer Elizabeth Divala said they are trying their best to trace the whereabouts of the murder suspect.

Divala asked the general public that if anyone knows Kaka’s whereabouts, they must report to any police formation.

The granting of bail to Ali Kaka attracted condemnation from residents of Manja and Chimwankhunda who argued that other murder suspects get remanded while awaiting trial.

The residents then took the law into their hands and torched Kaka’s house and cars.

Reports indicate that Chinemba is seeking ‘refuge’ in South Africa. But some residents in Manja have been claiming that the murder suspect sometimes sneaks into the area especially at night.

Kaka has been arrested twice in the past: for using his father’s passport and for having a hand in the abduction of three people in 2012 together with his boss at that time Ralph Kasambara who is serving a prison sentence for conspiring to murder Paul Mphwiyo.

In the 2014 elections he failed to secure a parliamentary seat for Blantyre City South constituency.