- Four villagers were sentenced to 135 years in prison for killing four old women accused of witchcraft October 2021
- Those found guilty, including a young child at the time, were responsible for the murder of women aged 57-85, and were given prison terms of between 15 and 40 years.
- The victims were accused of bewitching a student and dragged to an open field, attacked and burned despite their cries for mercy
- While the families of the victims welcomed the sentence, the families of the prisoners expressed dismay, calling the sentence unexpected and unfair.
Kisii – Four villagers, including a father and his son, have been sentenced to 135 years in prison for the brutal murder of four old women who allegedly practiced superstition.
Source: UGC
The murder, which happened in October 2021, shocked the nation and caused condemnation across the country.
Judge Waweru Kiarie gave the sentences during a court session via the Internet on Wednesday morning, January 22, emphasizing the brutality of the murder.
Amos Nyakundi Ondieki, popularly known as Sonko, Evans Ogeto Okari, and Hesborn Ong'ondi Gichana were sentenced to 40 years in prison, while Chrispine Makworo, Ondieki's son, was given 15 years in prison because he was still a child when he committed the crime.
“The second defendant is sentenced to 15 years in prison because it was proven that he was a child when he committed the crime,” decided Judge Kiarie.
The four were found guilty of killing Jemima Miranga, who was 60 years old; Agnes Ototo, aged 57; Sigara Onkware, who was 62 years old; and Sindege Mayaka, 85 years old.
The court ruled that the defendants had a common intention to commit the murder, referring to article 21 of the Penal Code.
Why were four Kisii women killed?
The women were alleged to have bewitched a Form Four student, an allegation that led to their brutal attack by a group of angry people.
Armed with local weapons, the angry mob dragged the elderly women from their homes to an open field in Nyagonyi village, where they were brutally murdered.
One of the victims, Sindege, begged for forgiveness, promising to give money he had saved for treatment, but his pleas were ignored.
The mob divided the money before dousing him with petrol and setting him on fire.
For the families of the victims, the sentence brought them some comfort, while Christopher Mayaka, the son of Sindege Mayaka, expressed his satisfaction with the court's decision.
“We are satisfied with this sentence and we will follow what the judge tells us. My mother's soul can now rest in peace,” he said.
However, the defendants and their families expressed dissatisfaction with the decision, saying that it was against their expectations.
Christine Ondieki, the mother of Amos Ondieki, expressed her dissatisfaction with the decision to imprison only four people out of more than 250.
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