Kitwe | July 30, 2026 – There is something powerful about leadership that shows up, not just in boardrooms, but on the ground, where the real work happens. Yesterday, the Learned Director of Public Prosecutions Gilbert A. Phiri, SC, took that message to heart as he toured prosecution offices across the Copperbelt Province, visiting Chingola, Kitwe, and Ndola in a working visit aimed at strengthening prosecutorial excellence and directly engaging with the men and women who carry the weight of justice every single day. Accompanied by Deputy Chief State Advocate in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Ms. Makumba Gwendoline Kashishi, the DPP was received by Copperbelt Deputy Chief State Advocate Mr. Katongo I. Waluzimba and Provincial Principal State Advocate Ms. Jacklyn Elizabeth Banda, who provided briefings on the state of prosecutorial operations and key developments within

The Court found Godfrey Phiri guilty of killing Mr. Bernard Chomba and Mrs. Bwalya Chileshe at their residence in Kasupe, Lusaka West. The facts before the Court were that the deceased couple went missing in November 2022. On November 22, 2022, following a report by a concerned friend that the couple had not been seen for three days, police officers visited their home and discovered their decomposing bodies approximately 30 metres from the house. Investigations led to the apprehension of Phiri, who had been employed by the couple as a garden worker. The accused person was later charged and arrested on 2 counts of Murder and 1 count of Aggravated Robbery. The Court heard that during the course of investigations, police recovered a silver Toyota Spacio registration number ADD 5815, a television set, a fridge, two laptops and three cellular

Lusaka | July 28, 2026 – The National Prosecution Authority (NPA) and the Legal Aid Board yesterday, Monday, July 27, 2026, agreed on a collaborative framework to roll out a national plea bargaining programme, beginning with inmate sensitisation at a correctional facility in or around Lusaka before expanding nationwide. The agreement followed high-level talks between the Learned Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Mr. Gilbert A. Phiri, SC, and Legal Aid Director Mr. Humphrey Mweemba, alongside senior management from both institutions. The collaboration is intended to expedite the resolution of criminal cases, ease overcrowding in correctional facilities and reduce the financial burden associated with prolonged incarceration. Eligible inmates will be sensitised on plea bargaining, the offences that qualify and the legal safeguards that govern the process before dedicated plea bargaining sessions are convened. The NPA has already engaged the Judiciary, the

Lusaka | July 27, 2026 – The National Prosecution Authority (NPA) and the Zambia Compulsory Standards Agency (ZCSA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen enforcement of compulsory standards and hold accountable those who place unsafe products on the market. The agreement establishes a framework for structured cooperation between the two institutions, recognising that effective regulation requires coordinated enforcement and prosecution. Speaking at the signing ceremony, the Learned Director of Public Prosecutions Mr. Gilbert A. Phiri SC observed: “The public does not experience government through institutional mandates. They experience it through outcomes. Every Zambian has a legitimate expectation that products they purchase meet safety standards.” Under the partnership, the two institutions will collaborate through structured case referrals, information sharing, joint capacity building, and where necessary, joint investigations. The agreement also provides for co-prosecution arrangements, allowing qualified legal practitioners from

Lusaka | July 23, 2026 – The Lusaka Magistrates Court has committed former Zambia Security Intelligence Service (ZSIS) Director-General Xavier Franklin Chungu to the High Court for trial, following the issuance of a certificate of committal by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). Chungu, 73, who was until recently a presidential candidate before withdrawing from the race, has been in custody since his arrest on May 28, 2026. He faces multiple charges under the State Security Act, the Penal Code, and the Zambia Security Intelligence Services Act, arising from a podcast interview recorded on May 24, 2026. Under Zambian criminal procedure, serious offences triable in the High Court require the DPP to issue a certificate of committal before the matter can proceed to trial. This certificate confirms that the DPP has reviewed the case file and is satisfied that the

Lusaka | July 23, 2026 – The Technical Committee of the Inter-Agency Coordination and Cooperation Framework convened its monthly meeting for July yesterday at the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) conference room in Lusaka. The Technical Committee, which reports to the Framework’s Steering Committee, serves as the operational engine of the Framework, coordinating inter-agency collaboration, reviewing ongoing initiatives and addressing emerging enforcement and financial integrity issues. Yesterday’s proceedings brought together senior technical experts from member institutions under the leadership of its Chairperson, Mrs. Chali Rachel Mbewe-Hambayi, the newly appointed Chief State Advocate at the NPA. In the first instance, the Committee considered recommendations arising from a dialogue with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on Addressing Risks of Corruption in Critical Energy Transition Minerals (CETMs). The discussion comes amid growing global demand for minerals essential to clean energy

Solwezi, North-Western Province | 19 July 2026 – The Department of Forestry has arrested two suspects and seized more than 200 Rosewood (Guibourtia coleosperma) logs, five trucks and heavy timber-processing equipment following a major enforcement operation conducted at a timber yard in Manyinga District. The operation, carried out on Saturday, July 18, 2026, was conducted by officers from the Department of Forestry. Senior Public Prosecutor Mr. Alex Yanganani of the National Prosecution Authority’s Environmental and Wildlife Crimes Department was present during the operation as part of ongoing collaboration between investigators and prosecutors in combating environmental crime. The operation followed investigations into suspected illegally harvested Rosewood ((Guibourtia coleosperma) from Manyinga District, which led investigators to the Zam-Viet timber yard situated on traditional land in Manyinga District. Upon inspection of the premises, investigators discovered a substantial quantity of suspected illegally possessed timber

Lusaka | July 20, 2026 -Friday’s daily morning briefing was expected to follow its familiar routine of case allocations, operational updates and prosecutorial business. Instead, officers and members of staff of the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) Lusaka Province transformed the gathering into something altogether different, a moment that spoke not of courtrooms and case files, but of gratitude, legacy and enduring camaraderie. The National Prosecution Authority had already formally bid farewell to all five of its newly appointed judges. It was a fitting institutional send-off, marking a proud moment for the Authority and the officers who had ascended to the Bench. But for Lusaka Province, the story did not end there. For more than four years, Justice Chipola James Bako had led the province as Deputy Chief State Advocate, providing steady leadership, mentorship and a firm commitment to excellence. To

Lusaka | July 16, 2026 – Zambia has become a reference point for justice reform on the continent after the Uganda Law Reform Commission (ULRC) chose Lusaka for a high-level benchmarking visit on the review of Uganda’s Identification of Offenders Act.A delegation from Uganda, led by Rtd. Hon. Justice Billy Kainamura, Commissioner of the Uganda Law Reform Commission, is in the country to understudy Zambia’s experience in offender identification, forensic science, and prosecution-led investigations. He was accompanied by the ULRC Secretary, Ms. Jeroline Akubu; Ag. Assistant Inspector General of Police Mr. Andrew Mubiru, who also serves as Director of Forensic Services in the Uganda Police Force; and other legal and research officers from the Commission.Ms. Akubu provided an overview of the ULRC’s constitutional mandate under Article 248(1) of the Ugandan Constitution, highlighting the Commission’s work in reviewing, modernising, and simplifying

Livingstone | July 15, 2026 – With the country inching closer to the polls, prosecutors and police investigators yesterday, Tuesday July 14, 2026, locked themselves in a day-long tactical session designed to fortify the frontlines of electoral justice. The National Prosecution Authority’s Livingstone team, led by Senior State Advocate Mr. Victor Choongo and State Advocate Mr. Malama Mataka, convened an interactive training with the Zambia Police Service yesterday, zeroing in on the investigation of electoral offences. But beneath the technical discussions on evidence gathering and case preparation lay a sharper, more urgent focus: protecting women from electoral violence and ensuring that perpetrators face the full weight of the law. The session, titled “The Investigation of Electoral Offences,” was not a lecture. It was a working clinic with prosecutors and investigators sitting shoulder to shoulder, dissecting case files, interrogating past failures,