Businessman killed in Niassa ambush – AIM

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Businessman killed in Niassa ambush – AIM

9:49 CAT | 17 May 2022

Image: Love Marrupa on Facebook

Unknown assailants killed a local businessman, named only as Macazar, when they ambushed his car last Saturday, in the northern province of Niassa, according to a report in Tuesday’s issue of the independent newssheet “Mediafax”.

The ambush occurred on the road between Marrupa district and the neighbouring province of Nampula, near the village of Nungo. A group of three men, all armed and masked, halted the car and shot Macazar dead. They stole money from the other four occupants of the car, who were also businesspeople.

It is not thought that this ambush had anything to do with the jihadist terrorists operating in Cabo Delgado province. There have been similar ambushes on Niassa roads in the past, particularly during the marketing season for cash crops such as tobacco and cotton, when buyers frequently travel with large sums of money.

The involvement of corrupt police officers is suspected, since they often know about the movements of businesspeople. On one occasion, in 2018, seven policemen were expelled from the force, in the Niassa districts of Maua, Metarica and Cuamba for involvement in this type of crime. Some of them are serving lengthy prison sentences in the Cuamba penitentiary.

There had been a few jihadist attacks in Niassa’s Mecula district, bordering on Cabo Delgado, in late 2021. But the Secretary of State for Niassa, Dinis Vilanculos, said at the weekend that Mecula is now calm, and that all those displaced by last year’s terrorist attacks, have now returned to their homes.

“All the people displaced from the Mecula district capital have returned to their areas of origin”, said Vilanculos. About 3,700 people had fled from the jihadist attack. The situation in Mecula has returned to normal, he said, thanks to the “effective” and “courageous” reaction of the defence and security forces.

The jihadist raids caused the death of a ranger in the Niassa Special Reserve, the largest conservation area in the country. The reserve closed down for several months but reopened for tourism on 19 April.