Police in Mchinji have launched a manhunt for unknown assailants who killed a 49 year old woman last week.

The woman, Getrude Phiri, was found dead with deep cuts in her head, a short distance away from her village.

Mchinji Police spokesperson, Kaitano Lubrino, said Phiri left her home on Thursday at around 3 O’clock in the afternoon and went to her field to harvest maize.

“The woman did not return home and this prompted her relatives to follow-up. They discovered her lying dead at a distance of 500 meters from her home whilst in a pool of blood and naked,” he said.

Lubrino said postmortem was conducted at Mkanda Health Center which revealed that the deceased succumbed to head injuries.

Police suspect that the murderers hit the woman with a blunt object before leaving her unconscious.

She hailed from Kam’duli village, Senior Chief Mkanda in Mchinji.