Malawi Police Arrest Former Convict for Possession of Military Equipment

By: Francis Polinyu Banda

Police in Mangochi district in Malawi have arrested a 42-year-old ex-convict, Wisiki Kaunda, for possessing three military handcuffs allegedly stolen from Mangochi Prison facility while serving a five-year sentence for burglary.

District police station spokesperson Inspector Amina Tepani Daudi,said on February 6, 2025, police detectives from the district received a tip from community members that the suspect was in possession of the handcuffs, which he allegedly used to terrorize residents.

Acting on the information, officers raided Kaunda’s house, where they discovered three handcuffs hidden in a laptop bag and subsequently arrested him.

“During interrogation, Kaunda, who was recently released from prison, confessed to unlawfully obtaining the handcuffs from a storeroom at Mangochi Prison”,Daudi said.

According to police, the suspect explained that while serving his sentence, he was assigned cleaning duties in the storeroom at the prison facility, which he used as an opportunity to steal the handcuffs.

“After stealing them,Kaunda buried the equipment under a tree outside the prison premises while working on a farming assignment”,she said.

Reports indicate that after the suspect was released from prison in July last year, he retrieved the handcuffs and began using them.

Prison authorities have  identified both the suspect and the recovered handcuffs.

Kaunda is expected to appear in court soon where he will face charges of unlawful possession of military equipment and theft.

He hails from Kalonga Village, under Traditional Authority Mapira in Mangochi.