Pathologist testifies in plane crash inquiry

**By Wezzie Gausi: **

Pathologist Steve Kamiza, who led a team that conducted postmortems on former vice president Saulos Chilima and eight other casualties of the June 10, 2024 plane crash, told the Parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee that the people died instantly due to the severe impact of the crash.

His testimony came after former police informant Dziwani Jassi told the committee that he does not believe the crash, which claimed nine lives, was an accident.

Others who were in the plane are former first lady Patricia Shanil Dzimbiri, Ministry of Foreign Affairs deputy chief of staff Abdul Lapukeni, Chilima’s medical officer Dan Kanyemba, guard commander Lukas Kapheni, aide-de-camp Chisomo Chimaneni, operators of the aircraft, namely pilot-in-command Colonel Owen Sambalopa, second-in-command Major Flora Selemani-Ngwinjili and engineer Major Wallace Aidini.

Appearing before committee members in Lilongwe yesterday, Kamiza said postmortems revealed that the people sustained multiple fractures and deep cuts, consistent with a high-impact plane crash.

“The bodies do not agree because the bodies were seated at the point of impact,” Kamiza said, dismissing suggestions that the victims might have been moved from their seats before the aircraft crashed.

He further explained that some of the bodies had soil and pieces of vegetation embedded deep inside their wounds, demonstrating the force with which the aircraft struck the ground.

According to Kamiza, the bodies were also covered in jet oil, including that of Chilima.

“The body of Chilima was full of oil,” he said.

Kamiza also said he was not surprised with the damage suffered by mobile phones belonging to those aboard the plane, saying the severity of the impact made it unlikely that the devices would have remained intact.

Other witnesses who appeared before the committee on Tuesday included former member of the late vice-president’s security team George Aladi and pathologist Dr Tamiwe Tomoka.

According to Parliament, the hearings were aimed at distinguishing the work conducted during the initial postmortems while examining issues surrounding identification of the deceased, collection of samples, medical records and handling of the bodies.

Earlier, committee members heard from Jassi, a Blantyre-based farmer and former police informant, who claimed that events he witnessed before and after the crash had raised suspicions about the circumstances surrounding Chilima’s death.

Jassi, who was not on the official programme, appeared before the committee after contacting its designated hotline, indicating that he had information he wanted to share.

He told committee members that he was contacted by a Criminal Investigations Department (CID) officer, Christopher Pangeti, who asked him to attend a meeting.

He alleged that during the meeting, Pangeti instructed him to accompany a team of police officers to Mzuzu the following day for an unspecified assignment.

According to Jassi, the group left Blantyre on the morning of June 9, 2024, and included officers he identified as Donnex Nkhata, Chingula, Carol and Pangeti, alongside a driver.

He claimed that upon reaching Lilongwe, they stopped at Area 30 before boarding another vehicle that took them to Walinase Lodge.

Jassi alleged that, at the lodge, they met the-then Director of Criminal Investigations Jessie Nyirongo, then Malawi Police director of operations Akis Muwanga and former CID officer Loudon Mthinda.

He further claimed that three white men dressed in military attire later joined the group, followed by two other men whom he believed were Malawians because they spoke Chichewa.

According to his testimony, the two men brought 16 mobile phones to the meeting.

Jassi also claimed to have seen Lovemore Chikopa and Dala Kadula at the lodge.

He said Nyirongo asked him about the progress of an assignment concerning the death of Issa Njaunju before leaving the meeting, reportedly indicating that she was travelling to Zambia.

However, Jassi told the committee that Pangeti later informed him that he would no longer accompany the team to Mzuzu because the assignment required someone who understood and could write English.

He said Mthinda subsequently assigned him another task in Ntchisi.

According to Jassi, on June 10, at around 10pm, he contacted Nkhata to report that he had successfully completed his assignment.

He alleged that Nkhata responded by saying that the Mzuzu mission had also been successful.

Jassi said he returned to Lilongwe on June 11, where he met Pangeti, who gave him K1.2 million for his services.

He further alleged that while travelling back to Blantyre, Pangeti received photographs of the late Vice-President on his mobile phone.

Reacting to the testimony, Parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee Vice- Chairperson James Mpunga said Jassi had raised serious allegations that required further investigation.

Committee chairperson Walter Nyamilandu said the committee would summon Pangeti and other police officers mentioned in the testimony to allow them to respond.

“We must go deeper than this. We call the police officers being mentioned,” Nyamilandu said.