The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
A 31-year-old man from Kisumu has been handed a 35-year prison sentence after being convicted of murdering his aunt following a domestic dispute.
According to a statement from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Kisumu High Court Justice Joe Omido found the man guilty of killing his aunt on February 21, 2023, at Kapuonja sublocation in Kisumu West subcounty, Kisumu County. He had been charged with murder under Section 203 as read with Section 204 of the Penal Code.
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During the trial, the prosecution presented six witnesses, including a pathologist who had conducted the post-mortem examination. The pathologist determined that the cause of death was a severe head injury resulting from multiple lacerative wounds.
The court heard that on the night of the incident, the man had scolded the deceased and his two cousins during supper, accusing them of plotting to poison him. He subsequently left the deceased and the two children inside the house before locking the door from outside.
According to the prosecution, he later returned and forced the door open after one of his cousins — a secondary school student — had locked it from the inside. The DPP stated that the man then attacked his aunt with a jembe, striking her on the shoulder and head with its sharp edge. She later succumbed to the injuries sustained in the attack.
It emerged during proceedings that the deceased had taken the man in following the death of his parents and had effectively assumed a parental role in his life.
After presenting evidence to establish each element required to prove murder, the prosecution urged the court to convict the accused, identified as Kevin Omondi Nyapietho, under Section 203 as read with Section 204 of the Penal Code.
Justice Omido ruled that the man was responsible for unlawfully assaulting the deceased and inflicting the fatal injuries, concluding that the prosecution had proven the elements of murder beyond reasonable doubt. The court subsequently sentenced him to 35 years in prison.
The DPP noted that the prosecution had successfully built its case through the testimony of the six witnesses, including the medical evidence establishing the cause of death. The convicted man was informed of his right to appeal both his conviction and sentence within 14 days.
The case centered on a domestic disagreement that tragically ended in the death of the man’s aunt, who had stepped in as a parental figure for him after he was orphaned.
