By Sellah Chunda and patience Longwe

Lilongwe, August 26,  Mana – Police in Nathenje have arrested a couple accused of strangling their  two year-old son to death in a gruesome plot to use his body for charms to gain wealth.

The incident occurred in Chikuwa Village, Traditional Authority Chitekwere, Lilongwe District.

The suspects, identified as Ivy Elinati (25) and Mphatso Nalinde (25), the child's mother and stepfather, are alleged to have conspired to kill the boy after striking a deal with an unidentified Mozambican witch doctor. The witch doctor had reportedly promised the couple wealth if they provided him with their son's dead body.

According to Lilongwe Police PRO Hastings Chigalu, the couple bade farewell to their relatives and friends at the husband's home village, claiming they were traveling to Mozambique to visit other relations.

 However, their true intention was far more sinister— they planned to kill the child en route to Mozambique to fulfill the witch doctor's demands.

After walking several kilometers, the couple reportedly lured their son into the bush, where they strangled him to death. However, when they contacted the witch doctor to inform him of their actions, he refused to proceed, claiming they had failed to perform certain rituals, making the body useless for the intended charms.

Fearing the consequences, the couple returned home with the deceased child, attempting to cover up the murder by claiming that the boy had suddenly become unconscious and died while strapped to his mother's back. However, the village elders grew suspicious of their story and alerted the police.

A postmortem examination conducted at Nathenje Health Centre confirmed that the boy had died from suffocation due to strangulation.

The couple has been charged with murder and will face trial in court.

The suspects, Ivy Elinati, hails from Chimbwala Village, T/A Mlonyeni in Mchinji, while Mphatso Nalinde comes from Chikuwa Village, T/A Chitekwere in Lilongwe District.