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Man jailed for life for defiling minor

Justice: Elijah Muthike, 27 has been sentenced to life in prison by a Baricho court in Kirinyaga for sexually abusing a minor. Delivering the sentence, Senior Resident Magistrate Stephen Jalang'o said the prosecution proved beyond any reasonable doubt that Muthike had committed the crime. PHOTO/FILE.

What you need to know:

  • Muthike had been working as a farm hand at the time he committed the crime.
  • The man warned the minor of dire consequences if she dared inform anybody of what had happened.
  • Mr Muthike who had been out on a Sh100,000 bond was whisked off to prison as family members sobbed outside the court room.

A man has been sentenced to life in prison by a Baricho court in Kirinyaga County for sexually abusing a 6-year-old girl.

The accused, Mr Elijah Muthike, 27 committed the offence on March,16 2013 at Njigi Village in Kirinyaga.

Muthike had been working as a farm hand at the time he committed the crime.

Senior Resident Magistrate Stephen Jalang'o said the girl had been left at home with her elder sister when Mr Muthike arrived.

He enticed the girl with rice and took her to the nearby house where he defiled the minor and told her to go home.

According to the magistrate, the man warned the minor of dire consequences if she dared inform anybody of what had happened.

Mr Jalang'o said the man escaped after committing the offence.

The girl narrated her ordeal to her parents who reported the matter to the police.

MEDICAL EXAMINATION

The standard two pupil was then taken to hospital where medical examination established that she had been defiled.

She was treated and discharged. Mr Muthike was later arrested from his hideout and charged with the offence.

Delivering the sentence, the magistrate said the prosecution proved beyond any reasonable doubt that Muthike had committed the crime.

He said cases of that nature were rampant in the area and the accused should be heavily punished to serve as a warning to would be offenders.

The prosecutor Chief Inspector Rose Roheya said the farmhand should be treated as a first offender as there were no other previous criminal records about him.

However, the magistrate said his hands were tied as the law provided for life imprisonment for an offender who defiled a girl of that tender age.

Immediately after the magistrate delivered his verdict, Mr Muthike who had been out on a Sh100,000 bond was whisked off to prison as family members sobbed outside the court room.