Unexplained bullet in 9-year-old boy

Nine-year-old Hezwick Daimoni of Blantyre’s Manase Township has been found with a bullet in his head that has left his family, doctors and police baffled regarding its origin.

The boy lies unconscious at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) and doctors have since described his condition as “critical, but stable”.

Hezwick’s father, Victor, said on Tuesday morning last week that the boy’s elder brother with whom he shares a room, was awoken by the boy’s cry only to find him covered in a pool of blood.

“It was around 3.30am when my elder son came knocking at my bedroom door that Hezwick was covered in blood and it looked like a six-inches nail had been put through his head.

“But when we came to the hospital, we were rushed to Lilongwe for a scan after machines at Mwaiwathu Private and [Blantyre] Adventist hospitals were reported to be out of order. It was there [in Lilongwe] that the bullet was seen at the back of his head,” recounted the father in an interview on Sunday.

He suspects the bullet to have been a stray one from a police chase with thieves in the area as he has been told by neighbours.

Said Daimoni: “I personally did not hear anything, but I have been made to understand that there was a lot going on that night. Apparently, there were thieves in the area [who] were [reportedly] being chased by the police.

“However, when I took the case to them [police],  they said there were no officers deployed to the area on that night and the police [in the area] only use big guns. The bullet found in my son’s head is apparently from a small gun. It all just does not make sense to me. All I want are answers and to talk to my son again.”

Dr. Mac Mallewa of QECH said removing the bullet from the boy’s head will cause more damage to his brain. He said the boy is currently under observation.

Blantyre Police Station spokesperson Lameck Thembachako said the case is being investigated and that more information will be available this Monday.