Female herbalist arrested for murder in Dowa

Malawi: Dowa police have arrested a female herbalist on suspicion of murdering a 2-year-old child, writes Sub Inspector Gladson M'bumpha, Dowa Police Station Public Relations Officer.

Nasiwelo Katema of Loke Village in Traditional Authority Msakambewa in Dowa District has been identified as the herbalist.

The incident occurred at Loke Village on Thursday, August 4, 2022.

According to reports, Farai Chinsinsi was born with a tumor in her head, and her parents attempted to visit various hospitals, including Kamuzu Central Hospital, where they were advised to wait for a specialist doctor to perform the operation.

However, the parents were unable to wait for this arrangement and decided to take their child to the aforementioned traditional doctor.

On Thursday, August 4, 2022, at around 09:20 a.m., the parents took their child to the house of the herbalist, who is said to have helped many people with their problems.

After arriving at the herbalist's house and inspecting the problem, the suspect began attempting to remove the tumor with a razor blade and began cutting the tumor.

The child cried as the tumor was removed, and she died as a result.

The incident was reported to community leaders, who also notified the police.

Upon receiving the report, police arrived at the scene with a medical doctor, and a postmortem revealed that death was caused by blood loss caused by an incision tumor.

The suspect will appear in court soon to answer a murder charge.