In the late afternoon of September 25, 2020, a violent car chase through the streets of Mishawaka, Indiana, ended in tragedy. Noria Mtambalika, a 29-year-old female originally from Lilongwe, Malawi, was shot and killed. At the time of her death, she was a nursing student at Ivy Tech. The incident began as Noria was driving with her sister, Mundi Glory Sendeza.
The two sisters noticed they were being pursued by a vehicle driven by Kalekeni Lindeire, Sendeza's ex-boyfriend.
In a desperate attempt to escape, the sisters sped away, but Lindeire gave chase and opened fire on their vehicle. A bullet struck Noria, causing her to lose control of the car, which then crashed into a parked vehicle and overturned in the parking lot of a shopping center. Following the crash, Lindeire approached the overturned car and attempted to drag Sendeza from the wreckage. His efforts were thwarted by the intervention of witnesses and the arrival of a Notre Dame police officer, which prompted him to flee the scene. Noria Mtambalika was rushed to a local hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.
Police quickly identified 37-year-old Kalekeni Lindeire as the suspect, and he was arrested. In addition to the charges stemming from the fatal shooting, Lindeire was also facing separate charges of kidnapping and rape in connection with an incident that had occurred just days prior. The St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office charged him with murder for the death of Noria Mtambalika and attempted murder for the attack on Mundi Glory Sendeza.
In November 2021, Kalekeni Lindeire pleaded guilty to one count of murder and one count of attempted murder as part of a plea agreement. This agreement carried a recommended sentence of 50 years in prison. His guilty plea brought a conclusion to the legal proceedings surrounding the tragic and senseless death of Noria Mtambalika, a young mother and student whose life was cut short by an act of domestic violence.
