How pharmacist, two others escaped jail in K45 sunscreen theft trial in Lusaka

The Lusaka Magistrates’ Court has acquitted a Ministry of Health pharmacist and two other accused persons who were charged with theft and unlawful possession of government property—specifically, sunscreen used by persons with albinism valued at K45.

Magistrate Mutinta Mweemba-Mwenya cleared Bibian Makwanja, Smart Simate and Wisdom Chilamo after finding that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.

Makwanja, 44, a pharmacist at Kalingalinga Health Facility, had been charged with theft by a public servant contrary to Sections 272 and 277 of the Penal Code. Simate and Chilamo, on the other hand, faced charges of being in possession of property suspected to have been stolen, contrary to Section 319(a).

The charges stemmed from the alleged theft of sunscreen SPF 30, said to be Government property, between May 1 and May 22, 2024.

The sunscreen, worth K45, was seized during a multi-agency operation at Misphat Pharmacy in Kamanga Compound.

The State called seven witnesses from the Ministry of Health, ZAMRA, ZAMSA and other institutions. The witnesses stated that the sunscreen recovered was identified as Government-issued and had no accompanying documentation at the time of seizure.

However, the defence countered that the product was legitimately stocked, regulated, and sold in private pharmacies, and that no evidence had been presented to show that the particular sunscreen originated from a Government health facility.

Delivering judgment, Magistrate Mweemba-Mwenya said the prosecution failed to establish the essential ingredients of theft.

“There must be documentary or eyewitness evidence to establish the taking of the item, and this was not sufficiently proved,” the magistrate ruled.

She noted that although the State alleged that the sunscreen appeared in the ZAMSA system, no inventory records were presented to show it was missing from Government stores.

The magistrate held that since the allegation of theft against Makwanja had not been proved, the related charges against the co-accused could not be sustained.

She therefore found all three accused persons not guilty and acquitted them.

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