A man was sentenced to 40 years imprisonment for lynching a suspected cow thief.
Samwel Ndung'u Wainaina while in company of other unidentified persons allegedly beat and lynched the deceased on accusations of cow theft.
The accused tortured the deceased by placing a tire around him and pouring stinging nettle on his face.
They are also said to have fractured the deceased leg and pulled him by it.
In a judgment delivered by Nyahururu high court judge Charles Kariuki on June 14, he said the deceased was subjected to a death penalty for a cow he allegedly stolen without being accorded a hearing.
“The accused should also get a severe sentence. He ought to be a lesson to people who think they can take the law into their hands and take away people’s lives,” he said.
In his defense Wainaina through his lawyer Mr Mbugua told the court that the deceased had died in course of being disciplined for his wayward conduct.
“The accused has realized that it was wrong to take the law into his own hands and discipline the deceased to his death,” he said.
He asked the court to accord him leniency.
On May 13 after Wainaina's conviction, state counsel Ms Rugut confirmed that he had no prior records of offences and asked the court to treat him as a first offender.
The court ordered the probation officer to make a report on the accused’s background leading to the incident.
The report was however not prepared as the accused refused to cooperate.
Kariuki said that the deceased must have experienced excruciating pain before his death.
“The accused and others subjected the deceased to a very cruel and inhuman treatment which violated his fundamental rights and freedom,” he said.
Kariuki ordered the accused to serve his sentence from the date of conviction.
(Edited by Bilha Makokha)
