Man tries to kill father in witchcraft row

A BULILIMA man has been jailed three years for trying to kill his father after torching a hut in which he was sleeping following accusations of witchcraft.

Lameck Muda, 66, begged the court to jail his son Sinako Muda, 21, following the incident that saw him and his wife fleeing half naked through a window around 3AM on October 1.

Sinako was convicted for malicious damage to property and making threats of murder by Plumtree magistrate Livard Philemon.

He was sentenced to 36 months imprisonment of which nine months were suspended for five years on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within that period.

Before passing the sentence, Philemon summoned the old man to respond to Sinako's claims that he harassed him.

"I stay under my father's roof and he's always harassing me and he doesn't treat me in a manner that a father should treat his son. I also suspect that he is bewitching me because he told me that I would never be successful and for sure my efforts don't yield much," said Sinako.

"He's constantly telling me that I'm lazy and that I'm a burden to him. The manner in which he treats me made me lose my temper."

The old man however, denied the allegations.

He said Sinako was not staying with him anymore as he had left without notice.

Muda told the magistrate that he would appreciate if his son was thrown behind bars for him to learn a lesson.

He said he only saw his son the day he attacked him. Muda said his son torched his bedroom hut while he was asleep inside but he and his wife managed to escape through a window without his son noticing.