- Judge Reuben Nyakundi confirmed that Edwin Chiloba's murder was planned by Jacktone Odhiambo, the main suspect
- The judge set December 16 as the day to hear Odhiambo's sentence after finding him guilty of murder
- Chiloba, a gay activist and proud model, was murdered on New Year's Eve 2023, then his body was hidden in a trunk and abandoned on the road in Kapseret, Uasin Gishu County
Eldoret – The High Court has found that freelance photographer Jacktone Odhiambo has a case to answer in relation to the murder of Edwin Chiloba.
Source: Instagram
Chiloba, an activist and proud model of the gay community, was killed on New Year's Eve 2023.
Why Jacktone Odhiambo is guilty of killing Edwin Chiloba
Odhiambo, his colleague and suspected lover was arrested and detained as the prime suspect of the murder.
Judge Reuben Nyakundi confirmed that with his primary evidence, the prosecution proved beyond any doubt that the suspect was involved in the murder.
The murder was planned, according to the court.
“This was not a death that was justified, this was not a death that was lawful. This was a premeditated evil,” the judge was quoted as saying.
The judge set December 16 as the day for hearing Odhiambo's sentence.
22 key witnesses presented their accounts in court before the file was closed in October this year.
Among the witnesses was the state's chief pathologist, Johansen Oduor, who conducted an autopsy on the remains of the deceased.
Another key witness is the government's chief chemist, Polycarp Kweyu, who told the court that the DNA samples of a man removed from the bed cover on Chiloba's body matched the seminal fluid taken from the main suspect.
Why the government wanted the death penalty for Chiloba's suspected killer
The government's prosecution pushed for the death penalty for Odhiambo, saying that the evidence presented in court sufficiently linked him to Chiloba's murder.
The main suspect was formally charged with the murder in February 2023.
Despite admitting to killing his friend, he later retracted his confession and since then has defended himself that he is not responsible for the death of the deceased.
The suspect's arraignment followed his arrest a few days after Chiloba's decomposing body was found abandoned on the side of the road.
Chiloba's autopsy report
Pathologist Oduor found that Chiloba died of suffocation after oxygen failed to pass through his body.
According to the autopsy of the deceased on January 11, 2023, at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret, the killers used a piece of cloth and a sock to block the deceased's breath of oxygen.
According to Oduor, Chiloba's mouth was stuffed with a sock, and his nose was covered with a piece of jeans, preventing him from breathing.
He also said there were no injuries or visible marks on the body.
Oduor further clarified that the deceased's eyes were not plucked out, as claimed, saying that the process of decay caused them (eyes) to sink.
Chiloba, a gay activist and proud model, was buried on January 17 at her home in Elgeyo Marakwet.
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