A Zambian fisherman has been shot and wounded by Congolese marine officers on Luapula River in Mwense District.
Webby Mambwe, aged 32, while in the company of five others was shot at on Sunday around 16:00 hours.
The bullet went in through Mr Mambwe’s cheek and grazed the left side of his neck. He is currently admitted to Mansa General Hospital.
Police deputy spokesperson, Charity Chanda, said the victim and his compatriots were suspected to have been fishing on the Congolese side of the Luapula River.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Mr Mambwe said he was with five of his colleagues having a meal at Lusangu fishing Camp in Chief Lukwesa’a area in Mwense when the six Congolese attacked them.
Mr Mambwe, who spoke with difficulty, said the armed Congolese approached the fishing camp in a speed boat and attempted to grab his banana boat, but he and his friends held on to it.
They said they wanted the boat, but when we resisted, the Congolese, four of them armed, started firing in the air and one of them aimed at me, he said.
Felix Ng’ombe, Mambwe’s older brother, who was at the bed side, alleged that the Congolese were in the habit of grabbing boats from Zambians so that they could sell them in their country.
Nurses at the hospital said Mr Mambwe would be taken to the theatre for an operation once he stabilised.
In May this year, 20 fishermen were apprehended by Congolese marines for straying onto the Congolese side of Lake Mweru.
The fishermen were later released in an exchange which saw Zambian security authorities releasing a Congolese soldier who had been captured by some fishermen.
In another development, one person died on the spot while another died on the way to the hospital after being run over by a vehicle in Mansa.
Joseph Mainga, 16, and Lameck Chilufya both of Chief Chimese’s area were hit by a Toyota Spacio, Registration number ACT 1337. ?
Ms Chanda said the accident happened when the driver, Danny Chungu of Mansa Police Camp, lost control and careered off the road as he tried to overtake another vehicle.
In the process, he hit the two pedestrians who were walking on the right side of the road.
The driver, with two passengers, sustained serious injuries and are admitted to Mansa General Hospital. The injured have been identified as Collins Banda and Frank Kayungwe, both aged 19.
The accident happened on Sunday around 19:00 hours near Kaole Stadium in Mansa.
Times of Zambia