A pastoralist sentenced to life in prison for defilement will now serve a 15-year jail term.
He appealed against a ruling that found him guilty of sexually abusing a seven-year-old after luring her with wild fruits. The appellant committed the offence on March 10 last year in Eldas subcounty, Wajir.
In his appeal, he said there was no proof of defilement and his case not proved beyond any reasonable doubt. He added that crucial witnesses were not availed in court.
He claimed the girl's mother had a personal vendetta against him, hence fabricated the defilement. "The doctor’s findings were that the hymen was intact. Thus, there was no penetration," he said.
The court said, "The sentence imposed upon him was very harsh and excessive to a young man of prime age like him. He thus urged the court to be lenient on sentence and allow his appeal."
The mother testified on March 18, 2019, that while she was at home, a woman called Mariam reported to her that her daughter was not well. Mirian told her that she had a wound in her vagina and felt pain when passing urine.
Upon checking her private parts, the mother said she concluded that she had been defiled. She added that the girl said the convict had defiled her in the grazing field and threatened to kill if she told anyone about it.
They then reported the matter to the police and the appellant was arrested. The girl was taken to hospital. The mother said the culprit was her husband's stepbrother.
The girl testified that they were herding goats when the man sat next to her, pulled down her shorts, had sex with her and fled when he saw her bleed.
"She described the ordeal in graphic detail and stated that when the appellant had put his thing into her vagina, blood had oozed out and that is when she got injured," the judgment read.
Duncan Kinyua, the clinical officer who examined her, testified that the minor had been presented to him on March 19, 2019, and she reported that she had been sexually abused by a relative. He said the girl was weak and there were bloodstains on her clothes.
Further examination revealed bruised private parts. When placed on his defence, the appellant renewed his innocence plea and stated that he had differed with his family members over pasture and was thus being framed.
He said the complainant's wounds were a result of FGM. He said the sentence was harsh and excessive.
While delivering judgment, Justice Charles Kariuki set aside the life sentence and substituted it with a 15 years’ imprisonment to run from the date of arrest March 20, 2019.
He said the appellant was a first offender and young, hence ought not to have been awarded the maximum sentence.
