Peter Jegwa
Thursday January 12, 2023
The High Court in Malawi has released the stepson of former President Peter Mutharika on bail two months after he was arrested and charged with aggravated human trafficking and murder.
Tadikila Mafubza has been linked to the deaths of 30 men, believed to be Ethiopian migrants, whose bodies were found in a mass grave in October last year.
He denies the charges.
The court on Wednesday ordered Mr Mafubza to pay two million kwacha ($2,000; £1,600), provide two blood related sureties each bonded at $5,000 in assets, and to surrender his passport and all travel documents to the police.
Mr Mafubza was not present in court when the ruling was made.
He was also ordered not to contact any witnesses related to the case and report to national police headquarters every Tuesday fortnightly.
The discovered bodies were found in an unmarked grave in a government forest in the northern district of Mzimba. A post-mortem found that they had died of suffocation.
Police arrested Mr Mafubza because they allege his car was used to transport the 30 men. A man said to have been the driver was also detained.
Malawi is grappling with the problem of organised syndicates trafficking men, women and children to South Africa, the US and Europe.