• The two were arguing about their elder daughter who misuses exercise books. This prompted Wigama to move out of the house to give the deceased room to cool down.
• But upon her return, the quarrel turned into a physical fight, which caused Wigama to stab the deceased in the chest.
Image: FILE
A woman accused of killing her husband in Embakasi by stabbing him with a knife over domestic violence, has been jailed for 15 years.
Celestine Wigama was convicted by High Court judge Daniel Ogembo after she admitted to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Wigama pleaded guilty to killing Dennis Watangu on October 17, 2021.
In a judgment delivered on December 7, Justice Ogembo said he considered the accused person expressing remorse and having saved the time of the court by entering the plea bargaining agreement with the prosecution.
The court further heard that Wigama was a young lady with two children.
However, the offence to which she has pleaded is serious. A soul of a young man of 28 years was cruelly lost by the action of the accused.
The judge further said from the report of the probation officer, the family of the deceased had been affected beyond any comprehension by the death.
He said the accused herself cited her inability to control her anger for the commission of the offence.
Ogembo said considering all these factors, the court is convinced that the aggravating circumstances herein outweigh the mitigation that the accused raised.
“And that the accused deserved a custodial sentence. Any person who commits the felony of manslaughter is liable to imprisonment for life," he said.
“I sentence the accused to serve 15 years imprisonment. Since the accused has been remanded in custody pending determination of this case, this sentence shall run with effect from when she was first arraigned in court.”
Wigama had last year pleaded to the charge of murder. However, before the commencement of the trial, she entered a plea bargaining agreement with the prosecution.
The prosecution urged for a sentence that would give dignity to the deceased.
It was the prosecution case that Wigama was cohabiting with her deceased husband for the last five years and their two children.
"The two were in the house with their two kids when a quarrel ensued,” the court heard.
The two were arguing about their elder daughter who misuses exercise books. This prompted Wigama to move out of the house to give the deceased room to cool down.
But upon her return, the quarrel turned into a physical fight, which caused Wigama to stab the deceased in the chest.
In the probation report, it was noted that the accused cited her inability to control her anger for the commission of the offence and that the accused may have internalised violence from the family level.
The report further alluded to a possibility of revenge on the accused from the family members and friends of the deceased.
Also reflected on the report was the negative attitude of the family towards the whole process of plea bargaining.
The court got the impression that the family of the deceased has hugely been negatively affected by the loss of the deceased, have rejected any form of reconciliation and even rejected the child of the accused and the deceased.
The attitude of the community was also expressed to be negative and unreceptive towards any form of non-custodial sentence. The victims have prayed for a deterred sentence.
In her mitigation, the accused said she was a first offender who has never before been arrested or charged in any court and that by entering a plea bargaining agreement, she has saved the court’s time.
Wigama is a family person who was married to the deceased and with one daughter who now lives with relatives and the other small son.
She told court she was in an abusive marriage with the deceased and was remorseful and asked for forgiveness.