A mob in Mponela has burnt to death a 38-year-old man after he was caught stealing goats.
Sergeant Macpatson Msadala, Public Relations Officer Mponela Police Station, has identified the suspect as Geoffrey Faindani.
The incident occurred on October 2, 2022 at Mwakana village in the area of Traditional Authority Kayembe in Dowa District.
According to Msadala, in the wee hours of October 2, 2022, the owner of the goats went out to answer a call of nature and he was surprised to see that his goat kraal had been broken into and two goats were stolen.
As he was trying to check, he heard the voice of a certain man shouting that he had caught two criminals who were trying to steal the goats.
Upon hearing that voice, the owner rushed to the scene where he found that one suspect had been caught.
Questioned about the stolen goats, the suspect revealed that he had tied them in a nearby bush. Faindani led the owner and other relatives to the nearby bush where they found two goats tied with masks on their mouths.
As they were coming back from the bush, they met angry villagers who snatched the suspect from the mob and assaulted him before burning him alive.
Later, Faindani’s accomplice called his cellphone, but by then the phone was answered by the owner of the goats.
The accomplice revealed that they had hidden a gateway motorcycle SanLg, green in colour just a few metres from the village.
Upon receipt of the information, a follow up was made and the motorcycle was found hidden at a nearby bush with ropes and stand which was supposed to be used to carry the goats.
According to Police, it has been discovered that Faindani was a well known criminal. This information was collected from the suspect’s relatives.
Postmortem by Clinical Officer from Mbingwa health center revealed that death was due to head trauma and severe burns.
Geoffrey Faindani hailed from Vizimba village in the area of Gumba in Mchinji.
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