14 November 2007
Ndola — Another tortoise yesterday delivered a letter to Kitwe magistrate, Phabious Numbwa with a message demanding the release of two prisoners whom he allegedly jailed.
The tortoise, which was found in court two in the afternoon carried a letter demanding that Mr Numbwa should release two of the people he had convicted to enable them go and solve the problems the prisoners' families were facing.
The letter also says Mr Numbwa should sort out the problems facing the families of the two unnamed prisoners if he did not release them.
Copperbelt police chief, Antoneil Mtetwa confirmed the incident in an interview yesterday.
He said the tortoise wrapped in a chitenge material was found in the courtroom just before 13:00 hours with a letter addressed to Mr Numbwa.
"Release those people you have convicted because they have left problems at home otherwise you will sort the problems yourself," reads the letter addressed to Mr Numbwa.
The letter which was written in Bemba, however, did not indicate the names of the convicts, had no contact address, nor the name of the author.
The tortoise was found near the bench close to where accused persons usually sit.
The creature was discovered shortly after the suspects who had appeared in court in the morning, had been taken to the court cell.
But Mr Numbwa said he was not moved by the letter, which he suspected to have come from one of the prisoners who had come from Kamfinsa prison.
"This has not moved me because I do not even know the people the letter was talking about," Mr Numbwa said.
In Bemba, the letter stated that, "Twapapata, fumyeni abo abantu babili abo mwatuma kuchifungo. Ifyenu fyenu, ne fyesu fyesu. Ngamulefwaya ukulanda naifwe mulaishe abobene abaletele inkalata."
Meaning, "Please release those two people you have convicted. What is yours is yours and what is ours is ours. If you want to talk to us reply through the same channel."
Meanwhile, police in Ndola have released the businessman who was being held in connection with the scheme in which tortoises and pigeons were being used as mail messengers to pursue debtors.
Ndola police chief, Stella Libongani confirmed the release of the suspect in an interview yesterday.
She said police decided to free the suspect after the complainant, Emmanuel Mulenga, who is owner of Easy Mining Limited decided to drop the charge.
Ms Libongani said the man whose name is being withheld was released on Saturday.
The man behind the bizarre scheme used a pseudo name Jean Marie on the letters, which were delivered to four Copperbelt businessmen owing him money.
He was detained at Kansenshi Police Station last week on Wednesday after Mr Mulenga lodged a complaint to the police.
This was after a tortoise delivered a threatening letter to Mr Mulenga's residence.
Other businessmen, Mumena Mushinge, Gelson Mwale and Philip Mike Shimoomba also received the threatening letters delivered to the entrances of their houses by the creatures in bizarre circumstances.
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