Court slashes 14-year sentence to five for man convicted of bestiality

The High Court in Bomet has cut a 14-year prison sentence to five years for a man convicted of bestiality.

Aron Koech was sentenced in July last year by a senior principal magistrate in Sotik after pleading guilty to an unnatural offence contrary to Section 162(b) of the Penal Code.

The sentence, the maximum possible, was slashed on May 12, last Tuesday, after Koech had served almost a year.

He was caught having carnal knowledge of a sheep on July 8 last year in Tegat village, Konoin subcounty. 

The felony carries a maximum penalty of 14 years

He appealed against both the conviction and the sentence, arguing that his plea was not voluntary. Koech said his plea had been defective and the punishment disproportionately harsh.

“It was the appellant’s submission that he entered the guilty plea while intoxicated and under the false assurance that the matter would be withdrawn,” court documents read.

“That a guilty plea entered when intoxicated or under confusion was not valid.”

 Koech also said the trial court did not warn him of the seriousness of the charge or the consequences of pleading guilty, disclosures required by law.

The prosecution said the plea process had been followed to the letter. Prosecutors argued that the facts were read out, established the offence and said Koech was given an ample opportunity to dispute, explain or seek explanation of the facts.  

In written submissions, however, the state urged the High Court to review the sentence to promote harmony, reconciliation and peaceful co-existence. It said the complainant, Nelson Kirui, who owned the sheep, had forgiven the appellant, Koech. 

The respondent also argued that Section 348 of the Criminal Procedure Code bars any appeal against a conviction based on a guilty plea, except on the extent or legality of the sentence.

Justice Julius Ng’arng’ar opted for leniency in sentencing, citing the appellant’s remorse and said the animal’s owner told the court he had forgiven the offender and had formally requested that the sentence be reviewed and reduced.

In delivering the judgment on May 12, Justice Ng’arng’ar however noted that the bar under Section 348 is not absolute. 

“Having gone through the trial record, I have noted that the trial court adopted the proper procedure in recording the plea,” the judge ruled. “There was no doubt in my mind that the appellant understood the charge he faced and the severity of the sentence it carried.”

Justice Ng’arng’ar concluded that the plea was unambiguous and unequivocal, and upheld the conviction.

On the sentence, however, the judge exercised mercy. The law provides for a maximum of 14 years imprisonment for carnal knowledge of an animal. 

Koech had no legal representation during the trial, a factor the judge said required heightened caution.

“In the end, I set aside the 14-year prison term and substitute it with a sentence of five years imprisonment,” the judge ordered. 

The reduced sentence will run from the date of plea taking on July 10 last year.