A 44 year-old man, Chisonyezo Khoza, from Moffat Village in the area of Traditional Authority Kachere in Dedza, has been ordered to spend the next 18 years behind bars by the Dedza Senior Resident Magistrate’s Court for defiling and impregnating his 13 year step daughter.

Dedza Police Public Relations Officer Sub Inspector Edward Kabango has confirmed.

After pleaded not guilty when he appeared before the court, the state paraded witnesses whose evidence proved him guilty.

In court, state prosecutor Sub Inspector Marriott Kamaliza, narrated that Khoza was staying with his two step daughters after chasing the mother of the two over marital problems and he started sleeping with the daughter who is 13 years old , taking advantage of the absence of her mother whose whereabouts is not known.

Khoza moved to Bembeke Trading Centre after noting that the girl was pregnant and bought her a phone and ordered her not to disclose the ordeal.

The matter was reported at Njonja Police after Khoza took the victim to her home village wher he wanted to leave her, but the village headman inquired about the man responsible for the pregnancy and she revealed that it was her step father.

When given a chance to mitigate, he only asked the Police to go to Mua and look after the other child saying she might be in trouble.

Sub Inspector Kamaliza asked the court for a stiffer sentence, saying it is worrying to note that many defilement cases in the district are perpetrated by Step fathers to the agreement of Magistrate Clemence Chamwenda who quashed the convict’s mitigations and jailed him to 18 years imprisonment with hard labour saying the sentence should be a warning to other would be offenders.