A WOMAN of Lusaka’s notorious Chibolya Compound will spend the next 18 years of her life behind bars for sexually assaulting a 10-year-old boy.
Martha Sampa 41, was motivated to commit the crime by a witchdoctor’s instruction that promised to cure her of tuberculosis if she went to bed with a young boy.
However, the twisted advice proved to be a cruel deception as she remained with Tuberculosis and now she has lost her freedom and dignity, despite performing the unspeakable act.
Sampa was sentenced by High Court judge Chilombo Maka as payment for the scars that the little human carries and may never be erased.
Sampa’s jailing flags off the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence, to be launched by President Hakainde Hichilema today at Mulungushi international conference centre.
In this matter, Sampa, an unemployed housewife of Chibolya area was charged with defilement of a boy under the age of 16.
Sampa is said to have met the victim who was sent to buy cooking oil within the same compound by his parents and lured him into satisfying her sexual urge at her home, in exchange for a K10 note to buy himself some jiggies and candy.
According to the boy Sampa falsely introduced herself to him as Anna, on their way to her house.
Upon getting to her house, the grandma caressed the young lad’s family jewels, which lacked virile to penetrate her.
Despite fondling the boy, his male organ couldn’t slip into Sampa’s genitalia to her satisfaction, to which she asked asked him to wriggle and pump but he could not bring her to climax owing to his undeveloped groin.
Sampa gave the child a K10 as promised and asked him not to disclose the immoral act to anyone failure to which she would spank him.
She paid the boy the same amount when she abused him on different occasions.
The boy disclosed to his parents about his sexual abuse at the hands of Sampa, after a relative walked in on him whilst he was bathing and noticed some rash on his private parts.
In her defence Sampa had told the magistrates Court that she was shocked when police officers interrupted her amusement during a beer-bust at a shebeen, on allegations of child molestation.
Sampa said whilst enjoying some opaque beer at a shebeen with her male patrons she saw two men in the company of a boy enter the bar.
She said the men approached their table and the lad pointed at her upon being instructed by the men.
“I asked what was happening and I was told mwa ononga mwana (you have violated a child). I asked what I had done and I was told I had infected him with Syphilis but I told them I do not know the boy,”she explained.
“I asked the boy if he knew me and he confirmed. I asked him to mention my name and he said I am Anna. I told him I am not Anna but Martha. The two men left but later returned. They asked me to accompany them to the police and I obliged.”
Sampa said whilst at the police station the police informed her that the juvenile had accused her of sexually assaulting him and infecting him with syphilis.
She denied ever knowing the child prior to exposing him to sex at an early age.
Sampa was committed to the High Court for sentencing by magistrate Mutinta Mwenya, on December 18, 2023.
However judge Maka in handing down her sentence said cases of child molestation especially of the boy child were becoming rampant and not usually reported, due to the societal stigma that prevents boys from disclosing their sexual abuse.
She said to send a strong warning to society Sampa needed to serve an example to pedophiles in society and imposed the prison sentence.
Judged Maka said the sentence is effective from the sated of arrest December 7, 2022.
By Mwaka Ndawa
Kalemba November 25, 2024.
