Witchdoctor jailed 5 years over K13. 8 m resurrection hoax

The Lilongwe First Grade Magistrate's Court has sentenced a witchdoctor to five years in prison after defrauding a woman of K13. 8 million in false claims that he would resurrect her dead husband.

The convict, Winstone Mvula, 60, was convicted Friday February 25 2022 on a charge of obtaining money by false pretences.

The court heard through State Prosecutor Sub Inspector Vincent Ntalawe that Mvula, on October 21 last year, approached a businesslady at her shop in Zamkutu along the Bypass road.

He claimed he would bring to life her husband who died in July last year after a short illness.

Mvula demanded money in millions which was paid to him through Airtel money and graveyard transactions.

The latter transaction took place at Mbwindi-Mchesi graveyard on the night of 23 November 2021.

At the graveyard, as per instructed, the unsuspecting victim handed Mvula K7 million cash and her late husband's clothes. 

The witchdoctor claimed the husband would wear the clothes soon after his rising from the dead. 

The husband, however, didn't resurrect.

Mvula went on telling the woman to return home to await her husband's 'homecoming' in the following morning.

He further advised her to prepare him [the husband] an early morning feast to celebrate his 'return.'

The husband, once again, didn't arrive home and this prompted the woman to report to Lilongwe Police Station.

A manhunt led to Mvula's arrest on obtaining money by false pretences charge, which he denied in court. 

The State, through Sub Inspector Ntalawe, paraded four witnesses to prove its case beyond any doubt.

Ntalawe asked the court to punish the accused hard, saying the victim had suffered a great loss since the money wasn't recovered.

But Mvula pleaded for leniency, claiming he was too old to face a long life in prison. 

In his determination, First Grade Magistrate Robert Botha struck off the mitigation, saying, as an elderly man, Mvula was supposed to be responsible and doing his business well.

Botha went ahead convicting and sentencing him to five years imprisonment with hard labour to deter other quack witchdoctors.

Mvula comes from Chiwato Village Traditional Authority Kaluluma in Kasungu District.