A 36-year old mother Maimuna Kassim who hails from Mikundi Village in the area of Traditional Authority Mponda, in Mangochi district has been sentenced to 5- years imprisonment with hard labour by the Mangochi Senior Resident Magistrate Court for permitting difilement of her 14-year-old daughter on her premises.
This follows the conviction of her husband to 21- years imprisonment with hard labour for defilement of the victim as a way to secure the convict’s marriage after she put to bed.
Mangochi Police Public Relations Officer Sub Inspector Amina Tepani Daudi has confirmed saying what the woman did was contrary to section 142 of the penal code.
State Prosecutor Sub Inspector Maggie Chibulire, told the court that the convict remarried in 2012 and brought her six children including the victim from her previous marriage and in May 2021, the convict and her husband connived to be sleeping with the victim and they initiated a 5-year contraceptive method ( Nor plant) on the victim and her stepfather consistently had unprotected sex with her.
She pleaded not guilty to the charge after appearing in court prompting the state to parade three witnesses who testified against him and in mitigation, Kassim asked for the court’s leniency, saying that her children will suffer if sent to jail because there’s no one to take care of them.
In her submission, Prosecutor Chibulire prayed for a stiffer sentence, saying the accused is irresponsible and goofed to play her role, as a mother to the agreement of Senior Resident Magistrate Rodrick Michongwe who slapped her with the maximum 5-year jail term in his judgement to deter other would be offenders.
