Thu, 25 May 2017 12:12:17 +0000
By VIOLET TEMBO
THREE Patriotic Front (PF) officials yesterday pleaded not guilty to one count of assault occasioning body harm when they appeared in the Ndola Magistrates Court, in a case in which they allegedly fought with two other party officials over land.
This is in a matter in which former PF Ndola district head of security, Nedson Siluonde, popularly known as ‘‘Mujomba’’, has complained of having been assaulted.
Particulars of the offence are that on 13th May, 2017, in Ndola district on the Copperelt, Geoffrey Chulu, 43, Leonard Ndeleshi, 36, and Mutale Chumbu, 41, whilst acting together did assault Siluonde.
Appearing before Magistrate Moffatt Phiri, Chulu, Ndeleshi and Chumbu applied for an adjournment as they had sought legal representation from Patrick Kasonde and Associates.
The trio informed the court that the lawyer they have engaged was out of town and was unavailable to represent them, asking the court to have the case heard on another date.
The State had no objection to the application and Magistrate Phiri adjourned the matter to 8th June, 2017, for possible commencement of trial.
Bond for the three accused persons was extended.
The complainant in the matter and the three PF officials were last week reported to have engaged in a fight over land in the Dola Hill area.
The incident led the complainant to being admitted to Ndola Teaching Hospital where he was nursed for injuries.
However, the three accused have registered a complaint at Ndola Central police over their missing docket which they had earlier opened for the offence of assault against Siluonde and another PF official Mutale Mapoma, known as ‘‘Scarface’’.
According to a source who sought anonymity, the police deputy in command at Ndola Central police division received the complaint and later summoned the officer who dealt with the report.
Last week police opened the docket for assault against Mujomba and Scarface but when the accused followed up on the progress of the matter it was found that the docket had gone missing.
The three PF officials registered their complaint before the Criminal Investigations Officer (CIO) Banda and it was established he had passed on the docket to an officer named Chibuye to have it delivered to Room 99.
‘‘The Police Division Command has since summoned and ordered Chibuye to find the missing docket,” the source said.
