Four jailed for 25 years for lynching KCSE candidate over phone theft
Paul Osinde, Benjamin Njenga and Julieta Ayieta at the High Court in Eldoret on April 1c, 2025 during hearing of the murder case. They have been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the murder of Ahmad Mohammed Ismael.
Four people have been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the lynching of a student in Eldoret over suspected phone theft.
The four -- Julieta Ayieta, Benjamin Njenga, Paul Osinde and Gregory Mukhori -- were found guilty of murdering 19-year-old Ahmad Mohammed Ismael, a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidate.
Delivering the sentence on Wednesday, Eldoret High Court Judge Reuben Nyakundi said the prosecution had proved beyond reasonable doubt that the they killed the deceased in cold blood.
Court documents placed the accused at the scene of the murder during a mob justice against the student after he was accused of stealing a mobile phone belonging to a college student in Eldoret town.
The prosecution told the court that the mob, led by the convicts and others who were not in court, while armed with crude weapons and stones, violently attacked the student, causing severe head injuries that led to his death.
During the hearing trial, the prosecution presented solid evidence, including CCTV footage, witness testimonies and forensic analysis, linking the accused to the killing.
“The CCTV footage that was played in court exposed the accused persons who were caught on camera beating up the slain student using stones and other blunt objects, resulting in his gruesome death,” ruled Justice Nyakundi.
The accused were part of a mob that chased the student and stoned him to death at the gate of the hostel where the theft victim lived.
According to the charge sheet, the four jointly committed the offence on June 2, 2023, at the West Indies estate in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County.
The family of the welcomed the verdict.
“The verdict is a relief... the court has given us justice after three years of making several trips to court,” Ahmed Ishmael, a cousin of the deceased, said after the sentencing.
tominde@ke.nationmedia.com