PROMISING FEMALE REFEREE KILLS SELF IN KAZUNGULA POLICE CUSTODY, BARELY TWO MONTHS AFTER LOSING HER FATHER

By Kwalombota Mwanangombe ‎ ‎A 26-year-old promising football referee and Arsenal fan has died after allegedly committing suicide in police custody in Kazungula District, Southern Province, barely two months after losing her father. ‎ ‎Milimo Nchimunya Mpongo was discovered hanging in the female cells at Kazungula Police Station on August 28, 2026. ‎ ‎Southern Province […]

‎By Kwalombota Mwanangombe
‎
‎A 26-year-old promising football referee and Arsenal fan has died after allegedly committing suicide in police custody in Kazungula District, Southern Province, barely two months after losing her father.
‎
‎Milimo Nchimunya Mpongo was discovered hanging in the female cells at Kazungula Police Station on August 28, 2026.
‎
‎Southern Province Police Commanding Officer Moono Namalongo says the incident occurred between 07:00 hours and 08:00 hours.
‎
‎Mr. Namalongo says Ms. Mpongo, of Makalanguzu Village, had been detained alone in connection with four separate theft complaints.
‎
‎He explains that it is alleged that on August 27, 2026, between 14:00 hours and 16:00 hours, she visited four Airtel Money outlets in Kazungula and requested transactions ranging from K1,000 to K3,400 to be deposited into her mobile money account.
‎
Looking for the latest sports odds and markets? Check them out here.

‎Mr. Namalongo adds that Ms Mpongo allegedly claimed she had forgotten the cash at home after each transaction and left the premises.
‎
‎He states that she was later apprehended and placed in police custody.
‎
‎Mr. Namalongo says officers spoke to Ms Mpongo at about 07:00 hours the following morning and found her alive.
‎
‎He says she was later discovered hanging in the female cells, using the chitenge material she was wearing, which had been tied to a window burglar bar.
‎
‎Mr. Namalongo further adds that police informed her relatives, and the body was taken to Kazungula General Hospital, where she was certified dead.
‎
‎He says her body was later transferred to the Livingstone University Teaching Hospital Mortuary for a postmortem examination as investigations into the circumstances surrounding her death are ongoing.
‎
‎Ms Mpongo and her family buried her father on July 11, 2026.

PTV2 Zambia