By  Sheminah Nkhoma

Lilongwe,  January 30, Mana: Police in Lilongwe are keeping in custody a 26-year-old on suspicion that he murdered his 13-year-old sister-in-law after defiling her in area 36, Lilongwe on January 25, 2025.

According to the spokesperson of Lilongwe police, Hastings Chigalu, the man was identified as Tsisa Mbangali, who was staying with the girl and her husband in the same house.

Chigalu said, that on the day Mbangali woke his wife around 1 a.m., claiming there was an intruder in the house, upon investigation, they found no signs of forced entry or exit.

“Seeing no such an intruder in the house, the couple only discovered that the 13-year-old girl was missing from the sitting room where she used to sleep. However, she was found outside, lying dead in a maize field almost five meters away from the couple's house,” he said.

Chigalu stated that Indications were there that the only person who was capable of having access to the girl, in this case, defilement, was the person who was inside, hence the arrest of Mbangali.

Meanwhile, a postmortem examination at Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) revealed that the victim's skull had been depressed by a heavy object and she had been strangled and defiled.

DNA samples from both the suspect and the victim have been collected for further analysis.

Mbangali, who hails from Buluzi Village in Lilongwe District, is currently being held by the Lilongwe Police as they investigate the matter further.