A MALAWIAN musician, arrested and questioned by police at the weekend, died in hospital on Tuesday in what his family says are suspicious circumstances. The 32-year-old dreadlocked reggae musician, known by his stage name Evison Matafale, was arrested by police in Blantyre Saturday and taken for questioning in Lilongwe, over 300 kilometres away. His arrest was for allegedly possessing “seditious documents” and for criticising President Bakili Muluzi’s government at his shows, his relatives said. Matafale’s brother, Tichitenji Kapito, said the family suspected “foul play” in the singer’s death. He alleged police took the musician to hospital on Monday for treatment to conceal evidence of torture. But Charles Mwansambo, a doctor at Kamuzu Central Hospital, dismissed the claim. “There is no evidence of torture. He died of severe pneumonia,” Mwansambo said. Police have remained quiet over the death of Matafale, whose elder brother, Davies Kapito is a senior politician in Muluzi’s ruling United Democratic Front (UDF). – AFP