Machinga — Chief Resident Magistrate Court that sitting at Machinga Boma recently convicted and sentenced a James Mwera, 36 to ten years imprisonment after the court found him guilty of killing three elephants three elephants worthy K105 million in the protected Liwonde National Park.
Mwera was answering five counts, killing of protected animals, entering a protected area with a weapon, selling of ivory, found in possession of ivory and entering a protected area without permission, according to the court.
Mwera was answering the five counts, all of them contrary to Parks and Wildlife act, according to Machinga Police Public Relations Officer, Davie Sulumba.
Mwea pleaded guilty to all the charges and he asked the court to be lenient with the judgment as he was a bread winner in his family.
“I have two wives both of them pregnant,” Mwera told the court adding that he has ten children with the first wife.
Prosecutor, Senior Inspector, Dickens Mwambazi asked the court to give Mwera a stiffer penalty because the crimes were all serious and were counterproductive to the country’s tourism sector.
Passing the judgment, Chief Resident Magistrate Agness Patemba concurred with the state that the crime was indeed serious considering the value of the elephants and the implication on Malawi’s tourism sector.
Despite Mwera’s mitigations, the court gave him a custodial sentence.
Mwera entered Liwonde National Park where they killed three elephants and took off their ivory.
According to police prosecutor the three offered the ivory for sale at K1.4 million.