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Police in Lusaka say they have gunned down five dangerous criminals involved in various criminal activities in the city, among them Joseph Zulu, alias “Zed Commander,” and Joseph Lupo, alias “Jay Code.”
According to Police Spokesperson Godfrey Chilabi, the shooting incident occurred on April 9, 2026, in Chibolya Compound and followed an earlier assault on a police officer in Kalikiliki Compound.
In a statement issued in Lusaka on Friday, Chilabi said investigations were ongoing, and that the bodies of the deceased suspects had been deposited in the mortuary pending postmortem examinations.
On April 9, 2026, around 10:00 hours, Kalikiliki Police Post received information from a member of the public that four suspected criminals—identified as “Zed Commander,” “Jay Code,” and two other unknown individuals—were in Kalikiliki Compound.
The suspects were reportedly armed with various offensive weapons, including pangas.
A team led by Inspector Mutemwa Mweenda, comprising three police officers and three Community Crime Prevention Unit (CCPU) officers, was dispatched.
The officers managed to apprehend two suspects and recovered machetes, while the other two fled.
“While escorting the apprehended suspects, the officers were attacked by their accomplices armed with offensive weapons, leading to the escape of the apprehended suspects,” Chilabi said.
During the attack, Mweenda sustained a fractured left leg, while one CCPU officer suffered minor injuries. Later the same day, police received information that the suspects had regrouped in Chibolya Compound.
A joint team of Anti-Robbery officers and Mtendere Police Station officers was deployed. Upon arrival, they were confronted by suspects armed with pangas, iron bars, and other weapons.
“The suspects charged at the officers and attracted a hostile crowd that began throwing stones,” Chilabi said.
He stated that despite officers firing several warning shots, the suspects continued to advance, posing an imminent threat to the officers’ lives.
In response, officers discharged firearms in accordance with Section 24 of the Zambia Police Act Chapter 107 to restore public order and effect lawful arrests.
Five suspects sustained gunshot wounds and were rushed to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH), where they were pronounced dead upon arrival.
Offensive weapons including pangas, iron bars, and an axe were recovered from the scene.
The deceased suspects had been linked to several cases, including an aggravated robbery involving Maherezo Boniface, 40, a Congolese national of Mtendere East, attacked on September 28, 2025.
The murder of Dorcus Chimwansa, 29, of Kalingalinga, on January 3, 2026 and an aggravated robbery in which armed criminals broke into Leya Phiri’s butchery on October 13, 2025, and aggravated robbery in which Musa Hasabu, 20, a Tanzanian student, was attacked on December 7, 2025.
The Zambia Police Service has instituted an inquiry into the incident.
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