Father of murdered 10-year-old Chikondi Banda has informed the court that the last word he heard from his son on the day he disappeared was bye.

He says this was on the morning of March 16, 2023, when the boy was leaving the house going to school, only for him to never return home.

In his testimony, Peter Banda says days after a search, he was informed by his mother, Alice, that the police had found the body of his son in Lusaka’s Emmasdale area.

Mr. Banda, however, says prior to the body being found, his sister in-law received a message in which the sender was demanding a ransom of K12, 000 for the release of his child.

In this matter, 24-year-old Nalukui Akafekwa of Garden Compound is accused of murdering Chikondi Banda on March 17, 2023.

The accused allegedly murdered the boy and later dumped him in a maize field in Emmasdale area.