The Principal Resident Magistrate in Lilongwe has sentenced 35-year-old James Banda to 19 years in prison for looting Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) property, pretending to be ESCOM employees and stealing 150 meters of aluminum wire.

According to Lilongwe police spokesman Hastings Chigalu, the court heard from Inspector Damiano Nyasulu that on the 4th of this month, the officer stole the wires from Dickson’s house while wearing an ESCOM work suit.

Mr. Nyasulu added that the officer went to a place where ESCOM stores goods where he lied to someone at the place that he worked for ESCOM and he would take wires to connect electricity somewhere.

The convict was arrested in Malingunde after he was found selling wires and when he appeared at the court, the elder admitted to the crime even though he said the court felt sorry for him because he was taking care of his elderly parents.

But Mr. Nyasulu said what the officer did was to set development back so he deserves a strict punishment.

Judge Rodrick Michongwe agreed with Mr. Nyasulu and ordered that the crime of theft be three years, the crime of vandalizing ESCOM property 12 years and the crime of pretending to be an ESCOM employee four years.

Mr. Chigalu said that the elder is from the village of Nyonga, chief of Masumbankhunda in Lilongwe.