A 32-year-old woman, Falesi Francis, has been sentenced to 5 years in prison after being arrested for putting her child in a sack and beating her aggressively in Chiradzulu.
In court, Francis denied the charges, and the government’s evidence has confirmed everything against him.
After being found guilty, he pleaded with the court for leniency, stating that he has three children to care for, including one who is disabled, and that sending him to prison would leave no one to look after them.
This plea was denied by the prosecution, represented by Smart Chankoma, who argued that the increase in child endangerment cases in the district warrants a strict penalty to serve as a lesson to others.
In a similar vein, magistrate Smart Maruwasa imposed a tough sentence and ordered that the child be placed under the care of the Chiradzulu council after he is released from a facility that looks after children at Amitofo.
