CAGE YOUTHS WHO KILL THEIR PARENTS

PATRICIDE is the act of killing one’s father and although it is extremely infrequent, it still remains a punishable offence under the law.

It is said that due to the statistical dubiety of adolescent parricide, this crime is virtually impossible to prognosticate.

However, there are factors that may increase the risk of patricide and these include a person suffering from chronic mental disorder with abnormal or violent social behaviour.

Some studies however have also shown that even severe child abuse or desertion cannot drive ill-treated adolescents to commit patricide.

But it has been widely established that patricide is committed by dangerously antisocial individuals who kill their parents because they see them as a hurdle to a goal or desire, such as money or freedom.

And this is exactly that led to a Katete juvenile who beat his dad to death after hitting him on the a head with a brick following a fracas over a mere cell phone battery

The boy, aged 16, of Kafumbwe village, in Chieftainess Kawaza’s area, reportedly killed his 49 year-old biological father, identified as Sipiliyano Phiri, after the duo got into a tussle over a cell phone battery the son was alleged to have stolen.

Eastern Province Police Commissioner, Luckson Sakala, confirmed the incident, which happened on October 1, around 15:00 hours.

Mr Sakala told the Sun that the brawl started when Mr Phiri wanted to discipline his son for having stolen a cell phone battery.

The son however fled and when his father tried to chase him, the unruly boy went berserk, picked up a brick and hit his father on the head.

The police commissioner said the victim collapsed and was rushed to Kafumbwe Clinic and later transferred to St. Francis Mission Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

“It is suspected that the father and son had a disagreement over a phone battery, and the father wanted to beat the son who ran away and the father tried to chase him. Then the boy picked up a brick and hit his father on the head and immediately the man collapsed.

“He was rushed to Kafumbwe clinic where he was transferred to St. Francis Mission Hospital but unfortunately he was pronounced dead on arrival,” Mr Sakala said.

Mr Sakala said body of Mr Phiri was deposited in mortuary at St. Francis Hospital awaiting postmortem.

He said the boy has since been charged with murder and was currently in police custody and would appear in court soon.

Meanwhile, an eyewitness, Mabvuto Zulu said, the incident happened when the father was admonishing his son against his criminal activities.

Mr Zulu who spoke to the Sun from the mourning house said the suspect was involved in a number of criminal activities, a situation which angered his father.

“The boy is in a habit of stealing things from people. Some few days ago he stole a battery from his friend.

“The father who tried to talk to him got upset, and got a stick to beat him up because he was tired of paying for his criminal activates. The boy run away and as the father was trying to chase him he picked a brick and hit the father on the head,” he said.

We think that time is now for Zambia to come up with forces to develop a campaign to stop youth violence against their parents.

That Katete incident may appear to be an isolated episode but it still has put a fly in the ointment.