Police overly secretive on Sacraine

On Wednesday, this week the Malawi Police Service (MPS) announced to the nation that the abducted Crossroads Hotel boss Sameer Sacraine on Tuesday night “safely walked” into his Area 9 home in Lilongwe. Sacraine was abducted at the hotel on February 6 2026 as he arrived at the hotel. And a closed circuit television footage showed that three men dressed in white robes ambushed him, then fired two shots into the air and shoved him into a Toyota Fortuner before speeding off.

Police later found the suspected gateway Fortuner in Area 6, fitted with two different number plates—KA1444 and KK1008. So mute was MPS when announcing the news to the nation. Sacraine “safely walked” home around 11.30pm is all they said.

They gave no more information. Mute on circumstances surrounding his release. Mute on the identity of the owner of the gateway vehicle.

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Mute on anything else about Sacraine. Uncomfortable with the MPS’ muteness following his abduction, Parliament on February 17 2026 moved Minister of Homeland Security Peter Mukhito to shed some light on the businessperson’s whereabouts. Mukhito was equally mute on substantive issues save to say that specialised investigative teams had been deployed.

But this was information people already knew. People knew police were investigating. When the police have nothing to say, they usually say they are investigating and that divulging more information to the public would jeopardise investigations.

But I dare say that police are being needlessly too mean with information on this matter. Just saying Sacraine “safely walked” home leaves people with a glut of unanswered questions. The brief announcement is actually an affront to the intelligence of the masses.

At a very minimum, they should have mentioned where he was coming from. I am sure they have that information. And at 11.30pm?

At that time, the streets of Lilongwe are deserted but extremely unsafe. Death traps to be more precise. Who ensured his safety as he “walked” home?

As of Tuesday, Sacraine had been in the hands of his abductors for one month and one week. What was happening to him during this whole time is information only he can divulge at his opportune time. Ethically, it would be callousness for the media to go to him now and ask for such information.

He needs empathy, emotional connection, understanding, and healing, rather than just pity. And more than ever so. But the police can tell us where he was and what was happening to him.

It is as if they are shielding and camouflaging someone, or something. They are whetting people’s appetite to know more besides creating a rumour mill. The police have said they will issue a statement later.

What is holding them now? A critical question to ask is: Whose interest is the paucity of information on Sacraine’s abduction serving? Are the police serving the interests of the abductors, the Sacraine family or their own?

Granted there are some police officers who are very professional, the service as a whole has a huge task of redeeming and rebranding its image tainted over decades by some bad apples in the rank and file. The primary job of the police is to maintain public order, ensure community safety and enforce laws. Admitted the police are doing commendable work in the face of the many challenges in their course of duty, but they should blame every problem they face on lack of resources.

Behind Sacraine’s abduction is the question of how safe taxpayers—who pay salaries for the police—in general, are. This caginess is annoying.

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