The court was informed by crime investigator Bauleni Thinda that he was satisfied with the evidence linking Lester Maganga to Allan Wittika’s death and thus secured a warrant for Maganga’s arrest.
Additionally, he claims that at some point, the suspect intimidated and warned Wittika about her relationship with State witness Olive Nkhono.
The accused was also dating Nkhono.
Because I was happy with the information, I proceeded to get an arrest warrant.
Although he claimed to not have been in the nation at the relevant period, Thinda maintains that the evidence supported his arrest.
Defense attorney Lusungu Gondwe presented the witness with travel documentation during the court proceedings, which revealed that Maganga was absent from the nation from September 17 to September 25.
The travel documentation consists of phone logs, a website for customs and border protection, electronic tickets, a passport, a visa, and bank transaction records made in the United States.
According to the call logs, Maganga’s phone was not active between September 17, 2023, the last day it was used, and September 25, 2023, the day it was active.
The documents state that Maganga departed for the United States on September 17, 2023, and arrived back home via Chileka Airport in Blantyre on September 25, 2023.
Chileka Airport entry and departure stamps are present in the passport.
According to Thinda, he cannot believe the “call logs” because they are from “dubious authority.”
When asked if he believed the paperwork proving Maganga was in the United States, the witness said, “I agree.” The witness stated, “the documents show he was outside of the country,” in response to the question of whether he could vouch for Maganga’s absence from the nation after seeing the travel documents.
When asked when Mr. Wittika passed away, the witness said, “September 20, 2023.” An alibi, as defined by criminal law, is a defense tactic used by a defendant to show that they were someplace else when the crime was committed, making it impossible for them to have committed the crime.
Maganga stated via his attorney Gonjetso Dikiya of Ritz Attorneys that a number of people can attest to the fact that he was not in the nation and that there are bank transactions to support this claim.
The suspect added that he was prepared to testify against a number of people he encountered at Bole International Airport on September 25, 2023, in Ethiopia during his return flight, including a travel agent, a US Embassy visa processing official, a chauffeur who drove him to Chileka Airport, and others.
Maganga is charged with killing Wittika, whose body was discovered on September 20, 2023, close to his home in Area 15 of Lilongwe, bundled in the back seat of his official car.
Raphael Chirwa, a Lilongwe-based businessman who deals in guns and ammunition, was the witness that the State paraded
Chirwa said in court that Maganga visited at some time in September 2023.
Maganga went to his store to get amminition, but he claims not to have the kind of ammunition Maganga was seeking for in stock.
Maganga told the police that he obtained the live ammunition and blank bullets he was discovered with from Chirwa’s shop, which is why Chirwa has been brought to testify.
Chirwa, however refuted the allegations, stating that the suspect did not purchase anything from his store and that he only keeps real ammo in stock instead of blanks.
“Since he did not buy anything from our shop, we don’t have any records about him,” Chirwa explains. Another witness, National Police Headquarters crime investigator Bauleni Mthinda, claims that Lester Maganga refused to turn himself up to law enforcement when ordered to.
Instead, the suspect suggested they meet at the Area 43 Filling Station, which is close to the Area 30 Police Headquarters, according to Mthinda.
He claims that as he was approaching the gas station, the suspect stopped and asked him to get into his car.
They then proceeded to drive to the gas station.
According to him, they had police officers hidden at the suspected fuelling station, and as a result, the suspect was taken into custody.
He claims that when they pulled the guy over to the Lingadzi Police Station for additional interrogation, they discovered a firearm in the red Toyota Rav 4, He lacked the necessary license to possess live ammunition.
Two live rounds and one blank were discovered with him.
The crime investigator said that blank bullets have the potential to detonate and inflict damage.
More state witnesses will soon be called by the court.
Maganga, the minister of information and Moses Kunkuyu’s personal assistant until his detention, was detained last year on suspicion of being involved in the unexplained death of Wittika, a Coca-Cola Malawi employee, in Lilongwe.
Maganga filed an application for bail through his attorney, Innocent Kubwalo, stating that the suspect is entitled to it regardless of the crime for which he is being investigated.
Maganga’s bail was denied by High Court Judge Mzondi Mvula, who dismissed the state’s argument that the suspect had political clout and may influence witnesses.
