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ZAMBIA’s immediate past Copperbelt Province Police Commanding Officer and a Mufulira magistrate are among six people charged and arrested in connection with the alleged theft of copper cathodes worth $448,596, police said Thursday.
Police Spokesperson Godfrey Chilabi said the six were formally charged following investigations into the theft of 436 copper cathodes recovered in the Mokambo area of Mufulira District between March 6 and March 9, 2026.
Yuyi Mwala, the former Copperbelt police chief, faces one count of Theft by Public Servant.
Police officers Patrick Muti and Boniface Nchimunya, Clerk of Court *Obrian Chipunza, and Magistrate Edward Banda, all of Mufulira, were each charged with one count of Theft by Public Servant and one count of Giving False Information to a Public Officer.
Businessman Daniel Makina was charged with one count of Receiving Property Suspected to Have Been Stolen and one count of Giving False Information to a Public Officer.
Chilabi said it is alleged the copper was being transported from the Democratic Republic of Congo to South Africa when the truck carrying the consignment was diverted into Zambia. The consignment was later recovered by police in Mokambo.
He said investigations found that after the copper was placed in police custody, it was released to a private individual through an allegedly fraudulent disposal process.
“It is further alleged that the copper was subsequently auctioned despite the owner of the consignment having been identified,” Chilabi said.
All six suspects remain in police custody and are expected to appear in court soon.
(Mwebantu, Thursday, 30th July, 2026)
