LUSAKA High Court Judge Irene Mbewe has cautioned women who are fond of holding on to toxic marriages to leave before they find themselves in trouble or on the other side of the law.
Judge Mbewe warned that if a man is violent, better to quit the relationship or marriage before one is found dead.
She was speaking when sending Ministry of Finance assistant director, Mildred Kasase to jail, where she sentenced her to 10 years for manslaughter.
The court also jailed her son, Madiba Zulu aged 20, a student at University of Lusaka for three years for the same offence.
This was after the court ruled that the Prosecution had failed to prove the charge of murder hence reducing it to manslaughter.
According to the court’s record, Kasase and her son were accused of beating to death, Alex Kanyama Zulu.
In their defence, the accused denied killing Zulu, claiming that the deceased fell from the stairs after causing a fight leading to his bruises.
The evidence before court was that Zulu was fond of beating his wife and children when he came home drunk.
It was established that Madiba, through WhatsApp texted his cousin, narrating how he threw something at his father which hit him leading to the unfortunate incident.
“A message was read in court how accused number two hit his father with a truck and pushed him downstairs when he was having a quarrel with his mother.”
But in his defence, Madiba denied beating his father to death stating that he loved him and could not do such a thing.
“Dad used to beat my mother and beat us too when he gets drunk, he could even break things in the house. I only separated the fight when I found my father on top of my mother punching her,” said Madiba.
After Zulu’s burial following his death, his relatives later demanded for an autopsy which revealed that the deceased had endured broken bones, fractured limbs, shattered ribs, and an array of bodily injuries, all attributed to the alleged assault.
The convicts through their Lawyers in mitigation begged the court for leniency because they were first offenders.
Osbourne Ngoma, Madiba’s lawyer said the court should exercise maximum leniency on his client as he was youthful and a student.
“My client already spent about two years [in jail], if the court sentences him, let him get a none custodial sentence,” said Ngoma.
When delivering the judgement, the Judge counselled Kasase and women to walk away from abusive unions before it is too late, in this case the loss of life.
“What you committed is a serious offence, if you are in a toxic relationship you would have walked away, you should have gone for counseling. To deter would-be offers, and people to take the law in their own hand, I will sentence you to 10 years imprisonment,” she ruled.
Going to Madiba the judge said: “I have considered that you are a first offender and you are at the University, you deserve a second chance in life. I know you shall be haunted for the rest of your life, your father was the aggressor and you were caught up in the matter. Though your actions had a serious impact on the deceased, I shall exercise leniency.”
She then sentenced him to three years imprisonment with hard labour effective from the date of arrest leaving the young man with only a year to knockout behind bars.
By Lucy Phiri
Kalemba July 3, 2025
