The Mchinji first grade magistrate court has sentenced a man to 116 years Imprisonment with Hard Labour (IHL) for trafficking eleven people to Mozambique.
The convict Stanley Matiya is reported to have trafficked 8 adults and 3 children from Mazengela and Kalumba villages in Lilongwe.
Matiya was charged with 8 counts of trafficking adults contrary to section 14 (1) and 3 counts of trafficking children contrary to section 15 (1) of persons trafficking act in Malawi.
State Prosecutor Assistant superintendent Dave Kasamale told the court that the convict trafficked the 11 to work in tobacco farms in Malawi’s neighboring country.
Kasamale pleaded for stiff punishment of custodial sentence following an increase of human trafficking cases in the country.
In his ruling, first grade magistrate Roswell Meja Phiri sentenced Matiya to 10 years for each count of trafficking adults and 12 years each for trafficking children. The sentences will run concurrently which means the convict will only spend 12 years in jail.
The convict is of Siniya village, Traditional Authority (TA) Mazengera in Lilongwe.
