The Director of Public Prosecutions has pronounced a 15-year jail sentence to a former police constable after finding him guilty of defiling a minor at Makutani Village in July 2022.

Delivering the judgement at the Kabarnet Law courts, Hon. Purity Kosgey stated that the prosecution proved the case beyond reasonable doubt, dismissing the claims by the officer that he had been framed to obstruct an unrelated case that involved the minor’s mother.

According to the testimonies presented in court, the minor’s ordeal began on July 7, 2022 after her mother was arrested after a fight in the village.

The court heard that the accused visited the minor’s home at around 4pm and claimed that her mother had instructed her to sleep at his home, which was unusual since she stayed at a neighbour’s house when her mother was away.

The accused returned later that evening and offered to bring her meat only if she agreed to stay alone at home and wait for him.

He later left for a bar but the minor chose to stay at her cousin’s home. The cousin returned after a short while and told her that her mother asked them to take their child to the police station for breastfeeding, and they left together.

On their way, they met the accused, who immediately confronted the minor, insisting that he had been looking for her. Upon arriving closer to the police station, the officer dismissed the cousin and led the minor inside the station while still carrying the baby.

He took her through different areas within the station, claiming her mother was in a tunnel although she was not.

When the minor expressed a desire to leave, the officer grabbed her forcefully, stripped her clothes off and assaulted her. She returned to her cousin’s home bleeding and narrated the ordeal to her, prompting an immediate report to the police.

The minor was later rushed to the hospital for medical examination which showed that her hymen was interfered with and had vaginal infections.

Seven witnesses were presented in court bearing testimonies that detailed the events leading to the accused’s arrest.In his defense, the accused denied the allegations, claiming that he was being framed to prevent the case against the minor’s mother from going to court.

However, the court noted that none of the witnesses had a grudge against the accused, and the sequence of events ruled out any conspiracy to frame him.

Given the strong, consistent evidence from the prosecution, Hon. Kosgey found this defense unreliable.

The court found the officer guilty of defilement contrary to Section 8(1)(4) of the Sexual Offences Act and therefore convicted him under Section 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code.