The Nakuru resident who admitted to selling cat meat in samosas has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Principal Magistrate Bernard Mararo sentenced James Kimani on Monday, after he pleaded guilty.
“The accused is sentenced by his own plea. He is to serve two years on the first count, with a Sh200,000 fine, and pay a fine of Sh50,000 or be imprisoned for one year in the second count."
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Kimani was arrested after being in the business since 2012.
The charge sheet states that on June 25 in Nakuru town, he willingly
slaughtered a cat for purpose of human consumption.
Kimani said he got into the business after identifying a gap, though he admitted that his customers were not aware that he was selling them cat meat.
The man said he killed more than 1,000 cats and sold the meat to vendors and hotels in the town.
He had prayed for leniency saying he could not resist the job of delivering the meat at higher prices.
“I was not aware that it was wrong to slaughter cats on open ground. I would have done my business in the forests," he added.
Kimani also said that he had a market
for cat skins and that he earned Sh500 for each one he slaughtered.
The businessman
pleaded guilty to a charge of exposing the carcass of a cat, whose meat is unfit for human consumption.
In the second count, Kimani was charged with slaughtering the animal at an un-designated open area, contrary to section 2 of the Meat Control Act.
The act notes that it is dangerous to eat the meat of animals that are not prescribed.
