The first convict, Christopher Phekani, has been sentenced to serve jail for life for killing his grandfather in 2014 to rob him of a K115,000.00 that he was keeping.

The other convict, Steven Lameck Zulu, murdered a security guard at one of the shops at Mchinji Boma in 2016.

Zulu and two accomplices hired a taxi and broke into the shop which was being guarded by Alikanjelo Sheko. Zulu pleaded guilty to murdering Sheko while his accomplices denied the charges.

In the third case, Nedson Khakhiwa, it was a marital murder. Khakhiwa killed his third wife in 2017 after family misunderstandings.

Judge Chombo said, “The three deserved a stiff punishment because the offence they committed is a serious one. It attracts the death penalty.

“Everyone has a right to life. And according to Section 209 of the Penal Code, anyone killing a human being needs to get punished accordingly,” she said.

Principal State Advocate from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Mathews Gamadzi, said he was satisfied with the pronouncement as it sent a public lesson.

Gamadzi said, “We commend the judge for sentencing the three to life imprisonment. This is what we advocated for”.