A Lilongwe man will spend 12 years in jail after being convicted of impersonating, stealing and damaging the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi ESCOM) aluminium conductor for a customer’s new electricity connection.
Lilongwe Principal Resident Magistrate, Rodrick Michongwe, meted the punishment on 35-year-old James Banda after he pleaded guilty to the three offences when he appeared before the court on Wednesday, October 23, 2024.
Prosecutor Damiano Nyasulu has since welcomed the judgement, saying: “We are satisfied with the punishment. It is what we expected, as cases of vandalism are increasing.”
Nyasulu said they arrested Banda after he disguised himself as an ESCOM employee and took the 150-metre aluminium conductor from businessperson Chikondi Chipala’s house, in his absentia, in July 2024.
ESCOM technicians had earlier brought the conductors to Chipala’s house after he had successfully applied for a new connection for his business premises at Dickson Trading Centre in Lilongwe.
Chipala, upon returning home, called the ESCOM office questioning why they had taken the conductor meant for his new electricity connection, only to learn that Banda was not the company’s employee.
Police eventually arrested Banda at Malingunde Trading Centre on October 7, 2024, while attempting to sell the aluminium which he had burnt, cut into pieces and stuffed in a sack.
Banda will serve12 years in jail for damaging the conductor contrary to section 45 (4) (b) of the Electricity Amendment Act of 2024, three years for theft contrary to section 271 as read with section 278 of the Penal Code and 4 years for personating an ESCOM employee. The sentences will run concurrently.
The convict hails originally from Nyong’a Village, Traditional Authority Masumbankhunda in Lilongwe.
ESCOM has lost K4 billion in revenue and replacement costs in the last two years due to theft and vandalism of assets such as conductors, transformers, earthmats, tower members and stay wires. The corporation registers cases of vandalism every day across the country.