Man found guilty in wife’s murder

The High Court’s Criminal Division in Blantyre has convicted Lucius Wilson of murdering his wife, Cecelia Yakob, after rejecting his account that he was attending his brother’s funeral when she was killed.

Wilson was convicted on Friday following a trial in which the court examined evidence surrounding Yakob’s disappearance and death, including the couple’s relationship and threats Wilson allegedly made before her death.

During the trial, Wilson told the court that he was in Lirangwe attending his brother’s funeral at the time of the offence. However, the State argued that his explanation failed to account for the critical period when Yakob was believed to have been murdered.

The court also considered evidence relating to Wilson’s treatment of Yakob and movements around the time of her disappearance before reaching its verdict.Yakob’s body was discovered in a maize field in May 2021, with a post-mortem examination establishing that she had been strangled.

Following the conviction, the court adjourned the case to a later date for sentencing and directed both the prosecution and defence to file their submissions within 21 days.

Meanwhile,the prosecution was led by Principal State Advocate Layna Kulesi from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, while Wilson was represented by the Legal Aid Bureau.