Mom found with case to answer over poison deaths

A MOTHER of three charged with murdering two of her children after she allegedly made them drink an insecticide has been found with a case to answer in the Lusaka High Court.

Mirriam Mulenga, 26 of Matero Township, is facing two counts of murder for allegedly killing her two biological children on 24th January, 2017.

Mulenga is alleged to have taken the insecticide herself and gave some to her three children. Two died but the oldest survived.

When the matter came up for continued trial before Judge Gertrude Chawatama, the prosecution told the court that they were concluding their evidence with the arresting officer as the last witness.

Detective sergeant Paul Siwo of Matero police station testified that he handled a murder case where Austin Sikazwe (the accused’s husband) complained that his wife had given a pesticide to her three children and that two of them died on the way to the hospital.

Mr Siwo told the court that he visited the crime scene and found a bottle labeled Doom insecticide in the master bedroom of the accused and that a little was left in the bottle.

The court heard that on January 27, 2017 a postmortem was conducted on the two juveniles and results showed that the cause of death was poisoning.

Mr Siwo testified that Mulenga was taken to Chainama Psychiatric Hospital for observation and that after she was discharged, she was taken to Matero police where he interviewed her on why she gave Doom to her three children.

Mr Siwo said during the interview, Mulenga did not give him a satisfactory answer. He then decided to arrest and charge her with two counts of murder.

“On the issue of administering the insecticide to her children and herself, she failed to give me a satisfactory answer. From there, I made up my mind to charge and arrest her for murder.”

Justice Chawatama found Mulenga with a case to answer and put on her defence. Trial continues on October 2, 2017.