The High Court dismissed an application by Jackson Kihara Gachucha seeking a review of his 20-year sentence for robbery with violence, ruling that the request had no merit.
In a ruling by Justice Alexander Muteti, the court said the arguments Kihara raised had already been considered by the Court of Appeal, and the High Court could not revisit them in the way he requested.
Kihara, who is serving his term at Manyani Maximum Prison, asked the court to review both his conviction and his sentence. He claimed that authorities framed him and that the court improperly convicted him. He also said the court did not account for the four years he spent in remand before sentencing, and he argued that the 20-year jail term remained excessive.
The inmate further told the court that he had rehabilitated during his time in custody, including training as a teacher, and urged the judge to consider his conduct in prison.
Kihara, who says he is the son of the late former Nyeri Governor Nderitu Gachagua, also alleged that prosecutors targeted him after a dispute over documents connected to his father’s estate.
He maintained that officials framed him and intimidated him in relation to those documents.
But Justice Muteti ruled that the High Court could not reopen factual issues that the Court of Appeal had already examined and resolved unless the case met the threshold for a retrial.
The judge also told Kihara that some of the issues he raised fell outside the High Court’s jurisdiction and that he would need to pursue them through the Supreme Court.
