Thom Mpinganjira, one of Malawi’s most powerful businessmen
and the founder of FDH Bank, has had one of the most dramatic legal journeys in
the country’s recent history. Convicted in 2021 of attempting to bribe sitting
judges in a landmark presidential election case, sentenced to 9 years in
prison, and ultimately pardoned by a head of state, his case has become a
defining story in the intersection of wealth, power, and justice in southern
Africa.
The Arrest and the Charges
Mpinganjira was arrested in January 2021 and charged with 6
counts under Malawi’s Corrupt Practices Act. The charges stemmed from an
alleged attempt to offer 100 million Malawian kwacha, equivalent to
approximately $120,000, to 5 constitutional court judges who were presiding
over a petition challenging the results of the May 2019 presidential election.
That election, which returned then-incumbent Peter Mutharika
to the presidency, was among the most contested in Malawi’s history. The
constitutional court ultimately annulled the results in February 2020, marking
one of the rare instances in Africa where a court overturned a presidential
election. New elections followed, and Lazarus Chakwera was sworn in as
president in June 2020.
Prosecutors alleged that Mpinganjira, widely regarded as a
close associate of Mutharika, attempted to influence the judges’ ruling by
offering them the cash parcel. Mpinganjira denied the allegations, insisting he
had not attempted to bribe the judges but had instead sought to verify whether
other parties in the case were delivering parcels to members of the bench.
The Conviction
On September 10, 2021, the High Court found Mpinganjira
guilty on the bribery charges. Judge Dorothy DeGabriele, delivering the
verdict, rejected his defense and ruled that the evidence against him was
sufficient to sustain the conviction.
Less than a month later, on October 5, 2021, the same court
handed down a 9-year custodial sentence. DeGabriele was unsparing in her
assessment of the offense, describing it as a serious felony that struck at the
foundations of the justice system.
“Under these circumstances, the offences committed were
aggravated and this court will not impose a non-custodial sentence,” she
said in delivering judgment.
State prosecutor Reyneck Matemba welcomed the outcome,
noting that the road to conviction had not been straightforward. The
prosecution team, he said, had faced threats to their lives and repeated
attempts to derail proceedings.
Mpinganjira was taken to Chichiri Prison in Blantyre to
begin serving his sentence. His legal team immediately signaled they would
appeal.
The Battle for Bail
The months that followed were dominated by legal wrangling
over whether Mpinganjira should be released on bail while his appeal was
pending.
In December 2021, High Court Judge John Chirwa dismissed
Mpinganjira’s application for bail pending appeal, ruling that the grounds were
not worthwhile, and ordered Mpinganjira to pay costs for the proceedings.
That ruling sent Mpinganjira back to Chichiri Prison, where
he spent the Christmas period. His lawyers took the matter directly to the
Supreme Court of Appeal.
In February 2022, Justice Frank Kapanda of the Supreme Court
of Appeal granted Mpinganjira bail pending his appeal against the conviction
and nine-year sentence. The Anti-Corruption Bureau, which had prosecuted the
case, declined to contest the bail decision. ACB lawyer Victor Chiwala said the
bureau had accepted the bail ruling, noting that Mpinganjira had a right to
appeal.
By the time he walked out of Chichiri Prison, Mpinganjira
had served 122 days behind bars.
Years in Legal Limbo
With bail secured, Mpinganjira returned to civilian life
while his appeal wound through the courts. The case dragged across years,
drawing persistent public attention and fueling debate about the pace of
justice in Malawi, particularly in cases involving wealthy and politically
connected defendants.
Critics argued the prolonged delay in hearing the appeal
amounted to a different kind of injustice. Advocates for judicial reform
pointed to the case as evidence of systemic weaknesses that allowed elite
defendants to remain free indefinitely while lower-court convictions stood
unresolved.
In September 2025, the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal set
November 18, 2025, as the date to hear Mpinganjira’s appeal, with proceedings
set to commence at 9 a.m. in Blantyre. The businessman, who had consistently
maintained his innocence and whose lawyers argued the original trial was marred
by procedural flaws, appeared set for a final reckoning in court.
It never happened.
The Presidential Pardon
Before the November 2025 hearing could take place, former
President Lazarus Chakwera intervened. Mpinganjira was among 37 prisoners
pardoned by Chakwera during Malawi’s Independence Day celebrations.
The pardon was remarkable for several reasons. Chakwera had
come to power on the back of the very election nullification that Mpinganjira
had allegedly tried to subvert. That a president whose path to office was
shaped in part by the integrity of the judiciary would pardon the man convicted
of attempting to corrupt that same judiciary drew significant commentary across
Malawi.
Following the presidential pardon, Mpinganjira wrote to the
Supreme Court of Appeal formally withdrawing his appeal against the High
Court’s ruling, bringing closure to a case that had captured national attention
for four years.
Malawians widely welcomed the move, with many viewing it as
a reconciliatory act and a demonstration of the nation’s desire for fairness
and forgiveness.
Who Is Thom Mpinganjira?
Mpinganjira is one of the most prominent figures in Malawian
business. He is the founder of FDH Bank, one of the country’s largest
commercial banks, and the head of FDH Financial Holdings, a diversified
financial services group. His business interests span banking, insurance, and
other financial services, making him one of the wealthiest individuals in
Malawi.
His trial, conviction, and eventual pardon have cemented his
status as one of the most polarizing figures in the country’s recent public
life. To his supporters, the pardon was an act of justice for a man they
believed was wrongly convicted in a politically charged environment. To his
critics, it was a demonstration that in Malawi, as in much of Africa, the
weight of wealth and connections can ultimately outlast the reach of the law.
The case also raised lasting questions about the strength of
Malawi’s anti-corruption infrastructure. The successful prosecution of a
billionaire for attempting to corrupt the judiciary was, at the time,
celebrated as a milestone. The eventual pardon complicated that narrative
considerably.
What is not in dispute is the scale of what transpired. A
sitting businessman of considerable means attempted, according to the court’s
findings, to purchase a presidential election outcome through the judiciary. He
was convicted, jailed, bailed, and freed. The full arc of that story took four
years to complete and ended not with a final appellate ruling but with a stroke
of the presidential pen.