A 75-year-old watchman in Mponela-Dowa has died after being hacked with a panga knife by unknown criminals while he was on duty at Mponela 1 Primary School on Thursday night, police have confirmed.
Mponela Police Public Relations Officer, Macpatson Msadala, has identified the victim as Alfred Josephy Kankwani aged 75, from Kamwana Village in Traditional Authority (T.A.) Dzoole in the district.
Msadala said the victim was on the day on duty with a colleague identified as Carlos Samuel, 48, of Chulu Village in Traditional Authority Mponela.
“Samuel reported that some criminals broke into the school’s room and stole a bag of polished maize (mphale) that was meant for a staff member’s wedding the following Saturday, and he saw one suspect carrying a bag on his head, so, he shouted for help.
“The suspect then dropped the bag and advanced towards the watchmen. Samuel managed to escape but unfortunately the criminals got hold of Kankwani who had failed to escape. He was severely injured by the thief,” said Msadala.
The police publicist further said Samuel alerted the school’s headteacher who immediately informed the police. After the police rushed to the scene, they took the victim and rushed him to Mponela Rural Hospital where Kankwani died while receiving treatment.
Postmortem conducted established that the cause of death was hemorrhagic shock with severe basal fracture or head injury secondary to assault.
Meanwhile, Mponela police have launched a manhunt for the suspects to answer the charge of murder.
Reported by Sylvester Kumwenda
