In Zambia, the Kasama High Court has heard how a woman allegedly died after a “rough” sexual encounter with her husband who had taken a local herbal enhancer called mtototo.

This is in a case Eric Katinala, 34, is charged with the murder of his wife, Martha Ndakala.

However, Katinala narrated before Ndola High Court judge-in-charge Emelia Sunkutu, who was sitting in Kasama, how his wife allegedly died after the sexual encounter.

Opening his defence in the matter, Katinala told the court that on October 18, 2018, he returned from Mansa where he was working as an automobile panel beater and spray painter for four months.

Katinala said this was after he was given a one-week break by his employer to move his wife and child from Kasama to Mansa.

According to Daily Mail, he said after spending a day at home, they both decided to go for a drink at a place called Esco.

As they were taking Eagle lager, a businessman who was selling traditional herbal medicines known as Congo Dust and Mtototo approached them.

“I then bought the herbal medicine called Mtototo. After that, we went home and while my wife was preparing supper, I took the herb,” he said.

Katinala said around 20:00 hours, the two started making love.

“During the sexual encounter, we would hit ourselves against the wall and the floor while changing positions,” he said.

Katinala said after some time, his wife told him that she was tired and asked him to give her water to drink and pour some on her body.

He said after taking water, they continued with the sexual encounter and in the process, his wife hit the back of her head against the wall.

“That is how we slept. Around 05:00 hours the following day, I tried to wake up my wife but she told me that she was feeling dizzy,” Katinala said.

At this point, Katinala went to make a fire so that he could prepare food for her.

Katinala said while making a fire, his brother-in-law visited and they had a chat.

After his brother-in-law left, he heard a child crying inside the house and when he went to check, he found his wife unconscious.

“I then went to my in-law’s place so that we could take her to the hospital. We later took her to Kasama General Hospital,” Katinala said.

He told the court that at the hospital, a doctor informed him that his wife had died and he was advised to report the matter to police.

When asked why he did not tell his wife’s relatives about what had caused her death, Katinala said it was difficult to explain exactly what had transpired.

He said traditionally, it is considered taboo to explain bedroom matters to in-laws but had instead confided in his parents.

Meanwhile, a forensic pathologist’s report showed that there was a blood collection in the head of Katila’s wife and she had neck injuries.

Katinala, however, said the neck injuries could have been a result of the different positions they took during the sexual encounter.

And when asked by the State if the sexual encounter was violent, Katinala said it was not violent but “unique”.