Creditor kidnaps debtor’s son over K70

A LUANSHYA local court heard that a creditor kidnapped his debtor’s son to compel the man to pay for a second-hand fridge he had sold him on credit.
Eleston Musebo told senior local court magistrate Judith Mwape Bwalya that he was shocked that Mainga Hichiwa abducted his son over the K70 he owed him as balance for a fridge he sold him for K900.
This came to light in a matter where Mr Hichiwa sued Mr Musebo over the bad debt. The complainant was also demanding a payment of K230 as penalty fee because Mr Musebo had taken long to pay him.
Mr Musebo, in his testimony, said Mr Hichiwa picked the boy from his house and handed him over to the police in pursuit of his money. However, the police had advised Mr Hichiwa to take the matter to court and return the boy to his parents because he was innocent.
The accused said it was unfair for Mr Hichiwa to take his son hostage when he had paid him a significant amount towards the fridge.

The accused further claimed that he had been making efforts to clear his debt but Mr Hichiwa was nowhere to be seen for quite some time.
In his submission, Mr Hichiwa said Mr Musebo kept on avoiding him and referring him to his wife each time he approached him for payment. He said this is the reason why he abducted the boy and handed him to the police.
Mr Hichiwa complained that Mr Musebo had taken long to pay him, hence his decision to sue him. The court, however, observed that there was no written agreement to show that a transaction really took place between the two.
But in passing judgment, Ms Bwalya ordered Mr Musebo to pay Mr Hichiwa K230 by next month because the debt had taken too long.
“This is the end of the matter. You must pay him on October 16, next month,” she said.