Chinese national jailed 3 years for manslaughter in Zambia

THE 36-year-old Chinese businessman who was on Wednesday sentenced to three years imprisonment with hard labour for manslaughter will be released from a correctional facility pending hearing of an appeal against his conviction.

The Chipata High Court convicted and sentenced Wu Zhigang to three years imprisonment for shooting Edward Manda, 47, of Zumwanda Chiefdom, Lumezi, Eastern Province.

After being shot at, Manda, who was among a group of people the convict found picking aqua stones at Jin Wan Mine in Lumezi, sustained a fractured thigh and died two days later at Chipata Central Hospital.

Wu was later arrested and charged with manslaughter, an offence he denied committing but on Wednesday, Lusaka High Court judge Getrude Chawatama, sitting in Chipata, convicted and sentenced him.

Dissatisfied with the judgement, the convict appealed against his conviction in the the Court of Appeal and applied for bail, which Judge Chawatama granted in the sum of K150,000 cash with two Zambian working sureties each bound to K50,000.

The court further ordered Wu to surrender his passport and directed him to be appearing before Chipata Central Police Station officer-in-charge every after 14days.