Hanang officer in court over attack claim
Katesh. A Hanang District Council a procurement officer has been arraigned for alleged brutal attack on a 19-year-old resident of Katesh, during which the latter sustained serious burns. Mr Nicodemus Angolwisye Johnson pleaded ‘not guilty’ when he appeared before Hanang District Magistrate Amani Petro Shao last week in a case which attracted scores of residents of Katesh township. It was alleged that the accused rained blows and other physical assaults using crude instruments and a pressing electric iron on Christopher Edward Bayanga alias Shukuru on May 28 after finding the latter in his house. Mr Bayanga, who completed Form IV only last year and now involved in entrepreneurship chores, claimed that on the day he as attacked, he went there to repair a mobile phone of the accused’s daughter.
Trouble started when Mr Johnson entered his house around the mid-day to find his daughter, Kisa, with the aforementioned visitor. According to the charge sheet, the procurement official, now stationed at the government-owned Nangwa Girls Secondary School, attacked both, but later settled on Mr Bayanga.
who happened to be a classmate of his daughter. Besides kicks and blows, the accused is alleged to have stripped him naked and used a blazing electric iron used for pressing clothes to burn him. He sustained serious burns on various parts of his body.
Christopher was reportedly saved by the police who rushed to the scene after a distress call by neighbours. He was taken to the hospital while the suspect was whisked to the Katesh police station.
The accused denied the charge and has been released on bail. The case has been slated for hearing on July 25th.
As the case has been adjourned, relatives of the assault victim have raised a red flag, alleging signals of a conspirancy to cover-up the incident in order to protect the suspect.
They claimed it had taken more than a month for the matter to be taken to court
The accused is also alleged to have framed up unverified charges that his daugher was raped on the material day in order to cover up the assault charges.
