THE 19-YEAR-OLD student accused of killing his parents in their Salama Park house last year in August has been referred to a mental facility for an examination which will determine whether or not he will stand trial.
This was after Bushimbwe Mwakacheya’s pro bono lawyer Boniface Chiwala applied that the teenager’s mental status be examined.
Mr Chiwala told High Court Judge Conceptor Zulu that having visited the accused while he was in detention, he realised that his client needed psychological examination before being tried.
“Following that interaction with my client, am of the view that he be subjected to a mental hospital to determine his fitness and ability to stand trial. This application is made in accordance with section 160 of the CPC CAP 88 of the Laws of Zambia,” Mr Chiwala said.
In response, State advocate Susan Mwamba-Besa said the prosecution team, which was ready for trial with three witnesses, had not objection to the application.
“The application is granted, the accused is to be examined as to his mental capacity to stand trial,” Judge Zulu said.
It is not known how long the mental examination will take.
When brought in court, the accused was seen smiling and had challenging walking steadily when been led out of the courtroom.
Bushimbwe is charged the murder of his father Nathaniel Mwakacheya, 53, and his mother Pemba Mwakacheya, 52, an incident which happened in August last year before the suspect was formerly charged in October.
The accused allegedly used metal bars to hit his parents between midnight and 10:00 hours on August 6 in their house on a Saturday.
A police report issued last year after the incident indicated that after the accused allegedly killed his life givers, he wrapped the bodies and dumped them behind the house and later told his sister that the victims had died of COVID-19.
(Mwebantu, Thursday, 16th March, 2023)
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