Police seize 1,100 litres of petrol in Mangochi

By Precious Msosa

Police in Mangochi have seized 1,100 litres of liquid petroleum following the arrest of 45-year-old Steven Ajasi who was found with 520 litres of the product without permit while another person who was found with 580 litres of the same commodity is still at large. 

The district’s police spokesperson Amina Tepani Daudi said in the evening of March 23, 2025, police detectives received a tip-off that an unidentified motor vehicle was transporting jerrycans of petroleum products from Mangochi towards the Chiponde border with Mozambique.

She said following this information, the detectives informed their colleagues at Idrusi Roadblock along the Bakili Muluzi Highway where the suspected vehicle was intercepted.

The seized petrol jerricans (Photo Credit: Malawi Police Service)

Tepani Daudi said upon searching the vehicle, the officers uncovered two drums and seven jerrycans filled with 520 litres of fuel of which Ajasi who was on the board failed to provide the valid documentation.

“While the officers were returning to Mangochi Police Station, they came across a Toyota Sienta registration number DA 2345 suspiciously parked along Chowe hills. Upon searching it, they discovered an additional 580 litres of petroleum products stored in 29 jerrycans but the owner managed to escape,” she said.

Tepani Daudi: We intercepted the suspected vehicle (Photo Credit: Internet)

Meanwhile, the police in the district continue to warn people against the illegal transportation and storage of fuel. Ajasi hails from Nanyumbu Village Traditional Authority Kawinga in Machinga.

Of late, some people have taken advantage of the availability of fuel in the country to smuggle it in Mozambique where it is hot business.