PASTOR’S WIFE ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY POISONING FAMILY MEMBERS

Police in Lusaka has arrested a named pastor’s wife from Chawama compound in connection with alleged food poisoning of 14 unsuspecting members of one family.

Zambia Police Deputy Spokesperson, Ndandula Siamana has confirmed the development in Lusaka today.

According to a source who sought anonymity in an interview in Lusaka today the arrest of the woman follows an incident in which six members of one family were on August 17, 2010 rushed to University Teaching Hospital (UTH) filter clinic after suspected food poisoning.

The source said other eight members were also taken to Chawama clinic the following day after eating the same food adding that this prompted hospital authorities to investigate the cause of sickness.

According to her, investigations revealed that the food and water had some poison and that an inquiry into the matter pointed to a named pastor’s wife of an identified local church.

The source further disclosed that the identified woman between 15 and 17th August allegedly hired another female, a neighbour to the victims to lace their food with poison.

The Pastor’s wife is in custody and will according to the source appear in court on Monday while the husband is away in Kapiri Mposhi where he is said to have gone for two weeks to open new church branches.

“The Pastors wife was behind all this incident, she used a friend who is a neighbor to put poison in the food, this was known after a child in the house who is also a victim told the family that she saw these women putting sometimes in the food”

“After the woman was questioned she revealed that it was the Pastors’ wife who sent her but did not know that it was poison “the source said.

And one of the victims, Mrs. Carol Banda who also confirmed the incident wondered how the woman who is a pastor’s wife would want to kill them.

Police Deputy Spokesperson, Ndandula Siamana who confirmed the development to ZANIS said the police received the information on Monday this week that the family was having their late lunch when they stopped eating to welcome relatives who visited them.

Ms Siamana said after escorting the same visitors, the family members continued with their lunch and they complained of running stomachs in the evening and were immediately rushed to UTH.

Ms. Siamana said Police suspected foul play saying investigations into the issue to determine whether there was poisoning had continued.

And efforts to get UTH Public Relations Manager Pauline Mbangweta proved futile as her phone remained unanswered.

ZANIS