Man jailed for 20 years for repeatedly sodomising a 12-year-old-boy

A 55-year-old man has been sentenced to serve 20 years in jail after he was found guilty of repeatedly sodomising a 12-year-old boy in Kaloleni, Kilifi County.

Kaloleni Principal Magistrate Lewis Gatheru convicted Mwakonde Mwadzala after ruling that the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.

The convict was charged with defilement contrary to Section 8(1) as read together with Section 8(3) of the Sexual Offences Act No. 3 of 2006.

Gatheru convicted Mwadzala under Section 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code after finding that the prosecution evidence was credible, consistent and sufficiently corroborated.

The court further ruled that the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), through Prosecution Counsel Fadhila Shauri, who called four witnesses, proved that the accused sexually assaulted the minor repeatedly.

The court heard that the accused, who had no familial relationship with the victim, lured the minor using money before defiling him on multiple occasions.

The abuse was uncovered after the victim's mother grew concerned about his unusual behaviour and discovered evidence pointing to repeated sexual assault at home.

Medical and other evidence tendered showed significant psychological harm suffered by the minor, although no additional physical aggravating factors were presented during trial.

The court noted that the accused was treated as a first offender with no previous criminal record but continued to deny the offence despite overwhelming evidence.

In sentencing, the court emphasised the gravity of the offence, particularly the exploitation of the minor's vulnerability through manipulation, inducement and abuse of trust for selfish gratification.

The court observed that defilement of children attracts a severe penalty under the law and found no justification to depart from the prescribed mandatory sentence in such cases.

The court added that it had evaluated the pre-sentence probation report before sentencing the accused appropriately.

Accordingly, the accused was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment, with the court applying Section 333(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding the period already spent in custody during trial.

The court ordered the accused to serve 19 years and three months from the date of sentencing.

The convict was granted 14 days to exercise his right to appeal against both the conviction and sentence.