Mucheleka case takes off, witness fails to identify accused persons

THE Kasama Magistrates’ Court yesterday heard from a PF witness how UPND Deputy Secretary-General Patrick Mucheleka allegedly ordered his four co-accused persons to destroy NRC Issuance machines and got away with a generator set but the same witness dramatically failed to identify the accused.

The other accused persons are Elias Mubanga, Sammuel Ngwira, Bwalya Chinyimba and Kelvin Bwalya

In this matter the accused persons have been charged with malicious damage to government property, for allegedly having raided officers who were conducting NRC mobile registration exercise in Chitamba village on September 13, 2020.

However, during trial the State witness failed to identify the first accused person in the matter Mucheleka and only said he knows him as Mule for ten years and did not go on to identify the rest, despite having the state itself applied before the court to have the accused persons remove their face masks so that he can identify them before the court.

The witness narrated that on the material day some PF members including himself were deployed at the NRC mobile registration centre, so as to provide security to the officers who were conducting the exercise and that it was at that point the accused persons raided them and committed the offence they stood charged with.

In cross examination, by the defence, when asked if the witness knew that the government has its security wings for any national function and not PF members to do so, he said he was aware and admitted that what he did was unlawful.

Trial continues on February 18 and 19, after the state applied before Principal Resident Magistrate Osward Chibalo that the other two witnesses who were supposed to testify in the matter were sick.