Zed farmer’s husband & three workers arrested over suspected murder!

Nathaniel Barthram, a Nigerian national and husband of renowned entrepreneur Maria Zaloumis, popularly known as the Zed Farmer, has been arrested together with three farm workers in connection with the death of 20-year-old Enock Kasengele.

The arrest follows an incident at Munyama Farms in Kabwe, where Kasengele was allegedly apprehended after being found with a hidden bottle of suspected chemicals. Reports suggest that he confessed to being hired by unknown individuals to pour acid on Zaloumis.

A disturbing video showing Kasengele being interrogated and severely beaten by farm workers and allegedly by Barthram himself surfaced on social media last Saturday, sparking widespread public outrage.

Following the incident, Kasengele was taken into police custody but later fell ill. He was admitted to Kabwe General Hospital, where he died on Sunday.

Central Province Deputy Police Commanding Officer Lemekani Chirwa confirmed the incident and said a postmortem was conducted on August 20, 2025, by Dr. Pavlo Lermontov of Kabwe Central Hospital.

“Preliminary results indicate that the deceased died due to blunt force head injury, brain contusion, and brain edema,” Chirwa stated.

He further revealed that Kasengele’s body has since been released to his relatives for burial in Lusaka. However, reports indicate that the vehicle carrying the body was involved in a road accident en route to Lusaka.

The three farm workers arrested alongside Barthram have been identified as Gift Daka, 23, Fortune Mutangeti, 27, and Daniel Chilowa, 40 all employees at Zaloumis’ farm.

Police say investigations into the matter are ongoing.