Youth Net and Counselling (YONECO) has repatriated back a 28 year-old man who was illegally detained for 15 years at Chilwa Reformatory Center in Zomba due to alleged failure by the Malawi Police Service to locate his relatives.

Mavuto’s mother, Marita Banda said she couldn’t believe seeing her son returning home having left over 15 years ago.

“My son has spent more than 11 years and being illegally detained because of someone’s negligence. Let me ask God to forgive them otherwise on my own, I can’t manage to forgive all those who took part in insulting the family,” she said.

YONECO’s Executive Director, MacBain Mkandawire said the organization is happy to have repatriated the man.

He however questioned police’s professionalism in the matter saying he cannot buy an excuse that the same police which arrested him was failing to locate his parents.

“We can’t buy an excuse that police failed to locate his parents. It’s the same police which arrested him when he was 10, what are they trying to say when they say the failed,” said Mkandawire while asking people to take their work as a service and not a source of income.

Makala was arrested in 2005 when he was only 12 years old on suspicion that he accidentally killed a friend.

He was later acquitted in 2009 but since then, he has been at the reformatory center as police says they failed to locate his parents.