Former army commander Paul Phiri detained in Malawi — Anadolu Agency

In Malawi, the country’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Thursday detained 54-year-old retired General Paul Valentino Phiri, the former commander of the Malawi Defence Force. He is suspected of facilitating illegal arms trafficking linked to the war in Sudan.

Case circumstances

As Anadolu Agency reports, the ACB said the charges concern Phiri’s alleged role in facilitating illegal arms trafficking in June and July 2025.

The bureau’s statement was released in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. According to the ACB, the retired general faces five charges.

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Charges

They include abuse of office and transactions involving property linked to terrorism. The source does not provide details about this property or the possible route of the illegal movement of weapons.

Phiri led the Malawi Defence Force from July 2023 to October 2025. He left the post in October 2025, one month after former President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera lost the general election to Arthur Peter Mutharika.