PILATO FACES ARREST
A BENCH warrant has been issued for the arrest of fugitive Chama Fumba also known as Pilato for consistently failing to appear in court in a case he faces with five others.
When the matter came up yesterday in the magistrate court, the state made an application for Fumba to be brought on a warrant which the court granted.
This is the case in which Laura Miti, Fumba and four others are charged with disobeying lawful orders.
Chama Fumba and his sureties have not been present from the time the matter was scheduled for plea.
Miti appeared for plea before magistrate Mwaka Mikalile with other four accused persons namely Lewis Mwape, PEP president Sean Tembo, activists Bornwell Mwewa and Mwika Mwambazi.
The 6 accused persons are being represented by defense lawyer Keith Mweemba and Gilbert Phiri.
The accused persons were given police bond without any sureties.
And defense lawyer Keith Mweemba expressed disappointment with what he termed unprofessional conduct over the manner in which the state had handled the case.
Later the court adjourned briefly as they went in chambers to study the state’s application and the letter from Amnesty International regarding Chama Fumba’s fate.
Magistrate Mikalile adjourned the matter to Friday February 9th 2018 for response from the defense and ruling on the application.
In this matter, Miti and five others were arrested on September 29th 2017 after they allegedly defied police directives not to go ahead with the protests over the purchase of the fire trucks during the presentation of the national budget outside the National Assembly premises.