90 Niggas Gang Members Convicted

By Paul Shalala

The Kitwe Magistrate’s Court has convicted 13 suspected members of the notorious 90 Niggas gang for conduct likely to cause the breach of peace.

The 90 Niggas gang is one of the newest teenage gangs in Kitwe which sprung up early this year. 

Passing judgement this morning, Kitwe Magistrate Malota Phiri found the 13 teenage gang members guilty of the offence they were charged with.

The 13 have since been remanded in the Kamfinsa Correctional Facility awaiting sentencing next month.

They are mostly youths from Kitwe’s Bulangililo Compound who are alleged to have blocked roads in Kwacha and Bulangililo compounds on 25 April, thereby disturbing peace.

The juveniles are aged between 13 and 17 are mostly pupils and unemployed youths.

Passing judgement of Friday in a case which took five months, Magistrate Phiri said the 13 guilty were guilty of the offence they were charged with.

Magistrate Phiri could not sentence them because they are juveniles.

They have since been remanded in custody and will appear in court again on 2nd October for Social Welfare Report and possible sentencing.

And in another courtroom, two surities who signed bail for a 24 year old Pastor of Kitwe have been sent to prison for failure to avail him to court this morning.

Pastor Alick Simbeye, who is facing a charge of defilement, has not been appearing in court since he was granted bail last month.

On Friday when the case came up before Principal Resident Magistrate Chongo Musonda, the two surities 53 year old John Kapisa and Peter Muleba struggled to explain the Pastor’s whereabouts.

Mr Kapisa, who is a Pastor in one of the Pentecostal Churches, told the court that they had failed to locate the accused but that he had been communicating with some people and he is within Kitwe.

Magistrate Musonda said she had been too lenient to the surities following the disappearance of the accused.

She later sent the two to prison pending the payment of the bond sum.

The two surities were bonded for 10 thousand kwacha each when they signed bail for Pastor Simbeye.

The case has since been adjourned to 21 September.

Pastor Simbeye is alleged to have had carnal knowledge of a girl below the age of 16 on 25 July on his way from an overnight prayer session at church.

He allegedly defiled the girl at the back of his car while another girl was sleeping in the car.

Tokota Boys Gang Members Finally Appear In The High Court

Tokota Boys leaving the Kitwe High Court after taking
plea yesterday. -Picture by Mushota Mpundu 

By Paul Shalala

The 19 suspected Tokota Boys this morning appeared for the first time in the Kitwe High Court.

Since they were arrested in May this year, the youths had been appearing before the Kitwe Magistrates Court for mention as they awaited for committal to the High Court by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The 19, who are mostly bus drivers, bus conductors, shop keepers and unemployed youths, appeared before Judge Timothy Katanekwa for plea.

The youths are jointly charged in three separate counts which could not be tried at the Magistrates Court following their arrest three months ago.

The Tokota Boys, some of whom were smartly dressed in suits and ties, pleaded not guilty to Acts Intended to Cause Grievious Harm, Unlawful wounding or Poisoning and Kidnapping or abduction.

The three charges rose from a a video where the gang members were seen beating a 16 year old boy of Mulenga Compound who they forced to eat his own faeces.

The matter has been adjourned to Wednesday this week for possible commencement of trial.

In this case, the State is being represented by four state advocates Jinjimali Mpopwe Sililo, Mwangala Mwala, Dean Akalemwa and they are led by Acting Chief State Advocate Mercy Lungu.

The suspected Tokota Boys are being represented by only two lawyers from the Legal Aid Board Mwendalubi Kapukutula and Maria Nzala.

Meanwhile, Judge Katanekwa has set tomorrow as the date for an inquiry to ascertain whether one of the Tokota Boys gang members is 20 years old as claimed by the state.

This follows an application by the suspect who told the court, through his lawyers, that he is a minor.

Their appearance in the Kitwe High Court is separate from three other cases some of the 19 suspected Tokota Boys gang members are facing in the Kitwe Magistrates Court which are currently on trial stage.

And three men who are charged with causing death by dangerous driving have pleaded guilty before the Kitwe High Court.

The three, Kalonga Mtolo, Charles Mumbelunga, and Christopher Milandu, who appeared separately, are from Kitwe, Chambeshi and Chingola and their cases have been adjourned to Thursday this week for presentation of facts.

Meanwhile, in the Kitwe Magistrates Court, a 24 year old alleged Pastor has pleaded not guilty to one count of Defilement.

Alick Simbeye of Buchi Compound appeared in court this morning charged with Defilement of a child under the age of 16 contrally to section 16 chapter 138 of the Laws of Zambia.

When he appeared for plea before Kitwe Principal Magistrate Chongo Musonda, Mr Simbeye identified himself as a businessman as opposed to what he is known for as a Pastor.

The case has been adjourned to 20 August and the suspect has since been granted a 10 thousand Kwacha cash bail with two traceable surities.

Facts before the court are that Mr Simbeye of Buchi Compound had carnal knowledge of the girl in the early hours of 25 July this year.

The case has been adjourned to 20 August and the suspect has since been granted a 10 thousand Kwacha cash bail with two traceable surities.

Magistrate Musonda said the two surities should also be bonded for 10 thousand Kwacha each.

Mr Simbeye has since been remanded in custody as bail conditions are being sorted out.

Alleged Tokota Boys Drug Supplier Gets Six Months For Marijuana

By Paul Shalala

Bright Kafula

For the second time within two months, a suspected drug dealer has been given two different sentences in two different courts for the same crime.

28 year old Bright Kafula of Kitwe’s Kwacha Compound was arrested on 22 May, 2018 with 51 rolls of marijuana which the Police weighed and found to be 6.4 kilograms.

Kafula, who is popularly known as Kamasu, is believed to be the main supplier of drugs to criminal gangs like the Tokota Boys, the 90 Niggas and the Sons of the Devil gangs which have wrecked havoc in Kitwe, a major mining town and Zambia’s second largest city.

Over 60 gangs members are before various courts appearing for several cases such as rape, assault, unlawful wounding, idle and disorderly conduct, among other charges.

And Kafula is suspected to be the main supplier of drugs to these gangs which are mainly composed of teenagers and beat Kitwe residents at night in neighbourhoods where they have "shared" territory. 

Few days after being arrested, Kafula was taken to the Kitwe Magistrate’s Court.

Police handed over the 6.4 KGs of the marijuana to the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) which prosecutes such cases.

The bag containing 51 rolls of marijuana
which Police officers found in Kafula's house

However, State Prosecutors at the court filed an affidavit which charged Kafula with trafficking 6.4 grams of marijuana instead of the 6.4 KGs Police found him with.

During trial, the suspect admitted having trafficked the drugs and pleaded for leniency.

On 30 May, Kitwe Magistrate Dominic Lesa found Kafula guilty and sentenced him to two months imprisonment but he suspended the sentence for 24 months.

This judgement was based on the 6.4 grams.

This judgement shocked Police officers who had arrested Kafula with the 6.4 KGs marijuana which he had hidden at home in a bag popularly known as Ukwa bag.

But when Copperbelt Police Commissioner Charity Katanga heard about the judgement, she  complained that the evidence Police collected was not what was presented in court.

Ms Katanga told this blogger in an intyerview at the time that Police were shocked and disappointed that the 51 rolls of marijuana which was found in Kafula’s house weighed 6.4 kilograms and not what Prosecutors presented in court.

"This is so disappointing. We catch a criminal with drugs and go and reduce the evidence in court. We are shocked at the way this case has been handled. We are appealing this case so that the High Court can review it and see if the suspect can be tried for the real crime he was arrested for," said an angry sounding Katanga.

A Ministry of Health analyst confirms 
receiving 6.4 KGs

The audio of her disappointment can be heard in this television report this blogger did for Zambia's state broadcaster TV1 on 31 May 2018.

Later, the National Prosecution Authority appealed the case to the Kitwe High Court so that Kafula can be tried again.

But at the end of the judicial review, the Kitwe High Court quashed the  24 months suspended sentence slapped by the Kitwe Magistrates’ Court on Kafula and replaced it with a six months jail term with hard labour.

Kitwe High Court Judge Timothy Katanekwa said the decision by the Kitwe Magistrates Court to suspend a sentence for someone who accepted trafficking in drugs shocked him and defeats the purpose of the court.

Passing judgement, Justice  Katanekwa said he arrived at the judgement considering the 6. 4 grams which he was charged with and the fact that Kafula had accepted the charge and was a first offender.

However, when the case went before High Court Judge, State Prosecutors pressed for the review on the charge Kafula was facing so that it can reflect the 6.4 KGs of marijuana instead of the 6.4 grams.

The court later called for specialists to analyse the drugs which were before court.

But the High Court still did not find grounds to admit the argument by the state to admit the 6.4 KGs.

This is despite the fact that Sumbukeni Kowa, an analyst from the Ministry of Health confirmed receiving 6.4 kilograms of marijuana which the DEC provided to him for analysis as part of evidence in court.

But in his judgement, Justice Katanekwa says the argument that Kafula was found with 6.4 KGs of marijuana does not stand because the affidavit filed by Kowa cannot be relied upon.

Judge Katanekwa's judgement

Justice Katanekwa says the analyst did not weigh the drugs as expected and he has decided to base his judgement on the 6.4 grams which the suspect agreed to have trafficked.

It is however unclear whether the National Prosecution Authority will further appeal the Kitwe High Court's judgement to the Supreme Court especially that Kafula has again been sentenced based on a lower amount of drugs than he was found with.

With this six months jail term which is effected from his day of arrest 22 May 2018, it means Kafula will walk out of the Kamfinsa Correctional Facility in Kitwe in November this year.

He is reported to be a close friend of Mwamba Siame, a top "Commander" of the Tokota Boys criminal gang whose 20 members where caught on video assaulting a teenager and forcing him to eat his own faecal matter for belonging to a rival "The Hundreds" gang.

Siame, who is popularly known as Mayweather in the gang, has been on the Police "Most Wanted List" since May 2018 as he is the one who violently beat the teenager with stones and sticks in the video which went viral on social media.

Tokota Boys Gang Members Slapped With More Charges

Tokota Gang members leaving the Kitwe
Magistrates' Court after taking plea 
-Picture by Marilyn Rose

By Paul Shalala 

More charges have been filed against a number of suspected Tokota Boys gang members, two weeks after they were charged for grivious harm, unlawful wounding, abduction and poisoning.

On Monday, the de facto leader of the Tokota Boys gang Boniface Lubansa was slapped with a further charge of unlawful wounding, contrary to Section 232 A of the laws of Zambia. 

The 21 year old Lubansa, who is popularly known as Nigga Lu, has been jointly charged with two other Tokota Boys gang members. 

These are 23 year old Kingsley Ngoma and Wezzy Chilembo who is  aged 20.

The three appeared before Principal Resident Magistrate Chongo Musonda for allegedly assaulting Israel Chileshe on 27^th February this year. 

They pleaded not guilty and their case has been adjourned to June 4 for commencement of trial.

On the same day, three other members of the gang were charged with raping a woman when they appeared before Kitwe Chief Resident Magistrate Yvonne Nalomba at the Kitwe Magistrates' Court. 

The three, who include 21 year old Richard Chileshe, Teddy Chilufya and Chris Kalenga who are both 20 years old, are separately charged for unlawfully having carnal knowledge of a woman in February this year.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges and the case was adjourned to June 11 for commencement of trial.

And in the main matter which came up on Monday, 19 Tokota Boys appeared for mention before Kitwe Chief Resident Magistrate Yvonne Nalomba where the state informed the court that the Director of Public Prosecutions has not yet issued instructions to commit them to the High Court.

Magistrate Nalomba later adjourned the matter to 11th June, 2018 for another mention.

The 19 suspected Tokota Boys are facing three charges of grievous harm, abduction or kidnapping and unlawful wounding and poisoning, charges which are only triable in the High Court. 

Their cases arose from a video where they allegedly assaulted a 16 year old of Mulenga Compound in April this year.

According to court records, the 19 Tokota Boys gang members are bus conductors, shopkeepers, pupils and unemployed youths from Kitwe, Ndola and Mufulira whose ages range from 15 to 34.

Meanwhile, trial in the case where the youngest member of the Tokota Boys gang is facing a single count of assault, failed to take off on Monday due to the absence of the minor's guardians.

When the case came up before Chief Resident Magistrate Yvonne Nalomba, the state presented the arresting officer as a witness but Magistrate Nalomba could not proceed with the case due to the absence of the boy’s guardians. 

The 15 year old boy is alleged to have assaulted Gift Mwale on 29^th April this year.

Magistrate Nalomba has since adjourned the matter to 11^th June for possible commencement of trial.

The 20 suspected Tokota Boys were ferried to the Kitwe Magistrates Court in four Police pickup trucks under heavy security.

Hundreds of Kitwe residents stood on either side of President Avenue to catch a glimpse of the notorious youths who have been brutalising residents for some time now.

The Tokota Boys are just one of the many gang members in Kitwe who are appearing in court on various criminal cases.

Other gang members from The Hundreds, 90 Niggas and Sons Of the Devil (SOD) gangs are all appearing in different courts on various charges such as idle and disorderly conduct, assault and theft.

Each of these gangs "control" several neighbourhoods of Kitwe where they beat up people and steal from them, especially at night.