Lawyer Alexious Kamangila was found guilty of perjury

Judge Dorothy Nyakaunda Kamanga of Malawi’s Supreme Court of Appeal has found private lawyer Alexious Kamangila guilty of perjury for fabricating facts and lying under oath in a criminal case in which the lawyer was defending a murder convict.

In her September 16, 2024 judgment as a Supreme Court judge, Justice Kamanga criticized Kamangila for his dishonesty and lying under oath in his affidavit to release his client from custody.

Kamangila defended Wyson Big Bannet who, along with Myson Viera Chizizira, was previously convicted of murder in 2013 in a murder case heard by the late High Court Judge, Justice Joseph Manyungwa.

Justice Kamanga said in her ruling that at the time of Justice Manyungwa’s demise in 2013, the verdict against the second defendant (Bannet) was still pending, necessitating the formulation of a case management protocol to engage another judicial officer to prepare and deliver the verdict .

“After the verdict was announced on April 19, 2018, both the prosecution and the defense were instructed to prepare and submit an application for a reduction in sentence. For reasons probably known only to the parties involved and their lawyers, this directive was not complied with despite numerous reminders circulated through the registrar’s office,” Justice Kamanga said.

She also pointed out that Bannet committed the crime in 2007, but the trial was heard in 2013 and the verdict was handed down in 2018, saying: “The main delay that this court considers justified concerns the period between the death of the trial judge and the delivery of the verdict. “Verdict”.

She criticized defense attorneys for the delays between sentencing and sentencing, describing their behavior as “delay tactics and professional negligence.”

Judge Kamanga therefore sentenced Bannet to 36 years in prison from the day of his arrest.

But she had no kind words for Lawyer Kamangila.

“In the instant case, it was procedurally inappropriate for the defendant and his counsel to take advantage of the trial judge’s handover and the consequent delays in reassignment of the case to file applications for unconditional bail and discharge before the court,” Justice Kamanga said.

“It is quite puzzling that the defendant and his lawyer, who have so far failed to provide the documents necessary for conviction, seem to be spreading false information about the legal status of the defendant and the progress of the proceedings in this murder case aimed at the “To undermine justice as a fundamental institution and its judicial officers.”

“The verdict that established the guilt of the second defendant and led to his conviction was announced in his presence, together with that of his then lawyer, on April 19, 2018, hence his lawyer’s current efforts to indirectly challenge the conviction through representation and challenge Portraying the convict as a long-term remand prisoner in an application and in the media constitutes “acting without care” and is considered unprofessional and unethical conduct on the part of the lawyer which the court will not tolerate,” Justice Kamanga said.

“The defendant and his counsel demonstrated a reluctance to comply with established practices and procedures relevant to the management of criminal cases. It appears that their main motive is a desperate attempt to evade criminal proceedings by filing petitions with various judges and engaging in media litigation, possibly in an attempt to bully and influence the sentencing court to release the perpetrator, without adhering to due process.”

“It is unfortunate and deplorable that some members and officers of the Malawi Law Society have recently appeared to be engaging in some kind of publicity contest whereby they are exploiting the circumstances of litigants to draw attention to themselves and the noble legal profession and so on “to divert the focus from the essential professional duties of legal practitioners and the ultimate goal of improving access to justice for all,” Justice Kamanga said.

“The way the defense has handled this case demonstrates a significant level of incompetence on the part of the lawyers who claim to be assisting the second defendant. It is also stated that Attorney Alexious Kamangila committed perjury in paragraphs 9 to 13 of the affidavit in support of the application for bail, discharge and effective remedy filed on July 12, 2022, in which he swore that the defendant is innocent is and is awaiting his verdict, although the defendant was fully aware that he appeared in court for the verdict on April 19, 2018.”

“There is always a risk of perjury when parties make statements under oath or lawyers make affidavits on behalf of their clients. “Furthermore, it is mandatory that lawyers wishing to represent a party in a particular matter must file and serve a notice of change or appointment of a lawyer before taking over the handling of that matter in accordance with the law.”

“Had the above-mentioned lawyer followed the proper procedure for hiring lawyers, he may have respected the actions of the other lawyers regarding the case and would have been better informed about the previous procedure, thereby exposing him to the risk of falsifying facts , would have escaped lying and perjury,” said Justice Kamanga.

She said the Bannet reserved the right to appeal both the conviction and the sentence imposed.

Under Section 102 of the Penal Code, perjury in a written statement is punishable by seven years’ imprisonment, while under Section 105 of the Penal Code, falsifying evidence is punishable by seven years’ imprisonment. Section 106 of the Criminal Code provides that swearing falsely before an oath commissioner is punishable by a prison sentence of two years.