The Chief Resident Magistrate’s Court in Lilongwe is set to deliver its ruling on Thursday on whether former Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA) chief executive officer Collins Magalasi should be granted bail, following a contentious hearing marked by conflicting accounts of the police search conducted at his home.
35 officers or 16? Lawyers clash over police raid as Magalasi fights for bail
Magalasi appeared in court accused of aiding a man identified as Lovemore to hack the phones of President Peter Mutharika and several senior government officials.
Chief Resident Magistrate Austin Banda said the alleged offence was committed between June and August this year, with victims said to include Lands Minister Chimwemwe Chipungu, Homeland Security Minister Peter Mukhito and his deputy Norman Chisale, Inspector General of Police Richard Luhanga, and his deputies Noel Kayira and Everista Chisale.
Magalasi, arrested on Monday, is accused of violating the Electronic Transactions and Cyber Security Act.
A notable dispute emerged during proceedings between Magalasi’s lawyer, Andy Kawonga, and Superintendent Isaac Ndala over the size of the police operation at Magalasi’s residence.
Kawonga said he witnessed at least 35 officers arriving in five vehicles, while Ndala placed the figure closer to 16 officers in three vehicles.
Kawonga argued there was little remaining justification for continuing to hold his client in custody over concerns of witness tampering, given that police had already seized everything of relevance from the property, including laptops.
Ndala, however, maintained that Magalasi’s financial resources could allow him to interfere with witnesses if released, and raised the possibility that he could recruit further IT experts to advance his alleged scheme — an assertion Kawonga dismissed as speculative.
Kawonga further accused the State of pursuing a strategy of bringing charges in stages purely to keep his client detained, noting that Magalasi had been charged the previous day in connection with the Amaryllis Hotel deal, only for a separate set of charges to be brought today.
“The purpose is to bring charges piecemeal to keep him in custody,” Kawonga told the court, arguing his client retains a clear right to bail.
The State called Superintendent Ndala as a witness to support its objection to bail, with Ndala telling the court that Magalasi’s connections present a genuine risk of witness interference or flight.
“He has connections; if he could hire IT experts, he is capable of tampering with evidence. He is not staying at his house… may flee,” he said, adding that the cyber team requires further time to analyse gadgets seized from Magalasi and others linked to him.
The defence maintained that Magalasi has remained under heavy police guard since his arrest, and that despite the search and seizure of property, the State has yet to present strong evidence justifying his continued detention.
