Father jailed 21 years for defiling daughter

Principal Resident Magistrate Court sitting in Lilongwe on July 23, 2023, convicted and sentenced 40-year-old Wyson Masamba to 21 years imprisonment with hard labour for defiling his nine-year-old daughter.

The court heard through police prosecutor sergeant Eliza Munkhondya that since June 2022, the convict had been defiling his child.

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On 10th July, officers went for a routine work at one stop center at Kamuzu Central Hospital where they encountered the incident. The mother of the child noticed that her child was too weak and decided to take the child to the hospital. At the hospital, it was discovered that the child was HIV positive yet she was born negative.

Police started investigating the issue where it was discovered that the biological father of the child had been defiling her for a year.

After being arrested, Masamba denied all charges leveled against him which prompted the state to parade three (3) witnesses who proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused person indeed committed the crime.

Defending himself, Masamba told the court that he had been unlucky for years and he believed his relatives were responsible for his misfortunes. He said that for that reason he visited the witchdoctor who advised him to be sleeping with his daughter for cleansing.  

In submission, the state pleaded with the court for maximum sentence saying that the child’s life and future had been ruined and that she was physically, mentally and psychologically affected such that life imprisonment will be the ideal punishment.

Passing judgement, Principle resident magistrate Rodrick Michongwe concurred with the state that what the accused person did was inhumane considering the fact that the he was aware of his health status. Michongwe then slapped Masamba with 21 years imprisonment with hard labour.

Wyson Masamba, 40, hails from Maweru village in Traditional Authority Chiwere in Dowa.