Three arrested for Escom property vandalism at Jenda
Published on March 6, 2025 at 12:00 PM by Edgar Naitha
Police at Jenda in Mzimba have arrested Manyani Fagayi Shaba for maliciously damaging an Escom transformer at Kavinkhama and stealing a 19-metre-long copper wire, and two other suspects, Joel Joseph Zikiele and Marko Banda, have also been arrested for receiving the said stolen copper wire in the district.
The arrest on March 5, 2025, follows a complaint made by Escom officials that led the police to institute an investigation promptly and to arrest the first suspect at an ad hoc road block.
It has been established that during the night of March 4, 2025, Jenda police received complaints that unknown criminals had vandalized an Escom transformer at Kavinkhama.
The same night, Jenda started erecting ad hoc roadblocks, and during the night of March 5, 2025, they intercepted a motor vehicle driven by the first suspect, who was found with copper wire weighing 10 kilograms.
Upon questioning, he revealed to have been behind the vandalism of several of Escom transformer such Champhira, Kaufipa primary school and Jenda transformers.
He also named his buyers, prompting Jenda police detectives to travel to Mzuzu the same night and arrest the second and third suspects who buy scrap metals at Vigwagwa market in Mzuzu.
The first suspect has been charged with vandalizing electricity installation equipment or apparatus, which is against section 45 subsection 2 (d) of the Electricity Act.
The second and third suspects have been charged with receiving property suspected of being stolen, contrary to section 328 subsection 1 of the penal code.
All three suspects will be taken to court soon after completing the paperwork to answer their charges.
