A 24year old man has been sentenced to 15years imprisonment after he was found guilty of gang raping a then 17 year old girl.
Alfred Otieno Oriwo was convicted after the trial magistrate ruled that the prosecution had proved the case against him beyond reasonable doubt.
While delivering the judgement, Chief Magistrate Francis Andayi said that he had no reason to doubt the testimony of the complainant because she was consistent and remained calm even after cross examination.
“I have noted that the victim remained calm an consistent and therefore the prosecution has proved the case beyond reasonable doubt hence I accordingly convict the accused as per the charge.
Oriwo who has been in custody since March 2015 after being denied bond, was charged with intentionally and unlawfully committing the offense on 16th March 2015 at Huruma Kiamaiko Estate in Nairobi jointly with others not before court.
The accused also faced an alternative count of committing and indecent act with a child.
Mitigation
In mitigation, the accused told the court that he is a young and energetic man who has his whole life ahead of him and who can help build the country.
He requested the court to release him on a non custodial sentence on grounds that he has never engaged in any crime nor charged in court. He asked to be given chance to help the society.
The court heard that the victim had been left at a ‘kiosk’ by a friend to wait for her when the accused approached her and requested her to accompany him to his house.
On arrival, the accused opened the door for the complainant and to her surprise, he immediately closed it. Inside were two more men.
The accused is alleged to have told the complainant that she loved herself and they were going to show her that they loved her too.
He told her to take her clothes off and she refused prompting the accused to pick up a knife and threatened to stab her if she screamed or disobeyed them.
He then pounced on her and started removing her clothes and they then raped her in her turns and released her after threats.
She went home and found her brother whom she did not confide in about the incident, rather she decided to go and inform her sister at her house.
On her way she met her friend who she had left to wait for her and upon asking her what happened, she told her that she had been raped.
Her friend told her to report to the police and accompanied her to the police station where she recorded a statement and them taken to the hospital.
The government chemist Examiner took samples from the victim’s clothes and a swab of DNA of Oriwo.
The examiner told the court that DNA from the victim’s inner wear and the skin tight she was
wearing matched the swabs taken from the accused.
A clinical officer testified that the accused who had reported at 11pm having been assaulted by three men had virginal tear increased clitoris margin, had spermatozoa and a broken hymen.
The victim was given medication for hepatitis B and HIV.
She took the police to the accused person’s house where he was found alone and arrested. He was then taken to Huruma Police Station and later had his blood samples taken.
The other two accused persons have never been caught till to date.
