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A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for defiling and impregnating a 14-year old standard eight girl.

The accused, Felix Otieno Okong’o is said to have committed the offence on diverse dates between November 2020 and April 2021 at the Kabuoch location within the Ndhiwa sub-county in Homa Bay County.

According to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Prosecution led by Moses Okerosi brought before the court six witnesses including the victim, whose testimonies corroborated and proved the accused had indeed committed the offence.

However, during the hearing of the case, the accused person was placed on his defence and opted for sworn testimony and presented two other witnesses in court.

Resident Magistrate B.W Murangasia having considered both the evidence presented by the prosecution and the mitigation by the accused person and while considering the impact that the accused’s actions had on the life and education prospects of the minor, found him guilty and convicted him under section 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Murangasia observed that the offence strongly affected the young girl physically, socially and emotionally and that the accused person showed no remorse for his actions.

Child defilement cases have for a long time been handled in hushed tones, with a sizeable number of cases never seeing the inside of a courtroom.

Defiling of minors

In 2023, Chief Justice Martha Koome warned communities with alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms against handling cases which are criminal in nature.

The Chief Justice advised the community justice centres to focus on minor family disputes, land cases and disputes that arise over succession.

“There is a limit to what the Alternative Dispute Resolution can do. They can deal with mild cases of family disputes, land, succession and conflicts between herders and farmers,” Koome said.

“Any cases that have to do with defilement, rape, attempted murder, robbery with violence and other serious offences belong to the courts for resolution,” she added. 

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