Bus Driver And Co Workers In Court For Kidnapping A Passenger In Chalala Area

A Lusaka mini bus driver and two others have been taken to court for allegedly abducting a woman who got on their bus as a passenger. Prince Mukelabai, Michael Simalabe and Chibwe Besa are charged with one count of kidnapping or abducting with intent to confine person.

Allegations are that Mukelabai, Simalabe and Besa on June 2, 2021 at Lusaka jointly and whilst acting together with intent to confine abducted Taonga Manda.

According to records, Taonga on June 4, 2021 got on a bus to Chalala.Mukelabai was the driver and he was in the company of his conductor and another person.As the vehicle was moving, Mukelabai asked Taonga where she was going and she told him that she was going to Chalala Shopping Mall.The driver then told Taonga that they were heading to Zesco Munyaule substation but agreed to take her to the nineth avenue where she was going.

However, as the vehicle continued moving, Mukelabai asked Taonga to remove her maskfrom her face but she refused. She noticed that Mukelabai was driving to a different direction other than where she said she was going and despite her threatening to jump off the bus, the driver continued driving her to unknown destination.The accused allegedly told Taonga that she was going to face the consequences of a bad day which he had endured during the day.

Taonga started screaming whilst in the bus and phoned her parents She quickly alerted them that she had been attacked by three men on the bus.She was later rescued from Shantumbu road and the matter was reported to the police who investigated and arrested the trio.

When the matter came up, Lusaka principal magistrate Jennipher Bwalya allocated the case to Magistrate Sanford Ngobola where the accused were expected to take plea but were not before court. The case comes up next week.