An Eldoret court ruled on Wednesday that a 41-year-old boda boda rider, accused of defiling and killing a Grade Six pupil before dumping her body by the roadside, will serve 30 years in prison.
Justice Reuben Nyakundi pronounced Thomas Nyongesa guilty of defiling and murdering the victim on October 15, 2021, in Lumakanda, Kakamega County.
Nyongesa, a close neighbor to the deceased’s family, allegedly lured the pupil with a ride on his motorcycle as she was heading home from school on the fateful evening. He then took her to his house, where he sexually assaulted her.
The court was informed that the minor’s genitalia were severely damaged, indicating that she may have been defiled and tortured before her mutilated body was discarded by the roadside near her home.
In court, the victim’s mother wept as she recounted the last moments with her daughter on October 14, 2021. She had prepared breakfast for her before seeing her off to school, anticipating their usual evening catch-up after school.
The distressed mother broke down several times on the witness stand, finding it difficult to narrate the events of the fateful day when her daughter was reported missing, prompting a frantic search.
“My daughter left for school on the morning of October 14 but did not return home in the evening, something that caused a lot of fear and tension in my family because she had never failed to return home,” she told the court.
The court was also informed that in the morning, the suspect arrived at the victim’s home and asked her mother to accompany him to identify a child who had been abandoned by the roadside.
“I obliged and when we arrived at the scene I found out that the mutilated body which had been dumped by the roadside was my daughter’s, and she had been defiled and tortured,” the distraught mother testified.
“The man who is behind the death of my daughter is well known to me and my children since we built our home on land we bought from his elder brother,” she added.
In his mitigation, the convict pleaded innocence, asserting that he neither knew the victim nor her mother.
In his ruling, Justice Nyakundi noted that the heinous offense was committed against a child of tender age who was yet to realize her purpose on earth.
“This was a gender-based crime of a young girl whose safety and security should have been guaranteed by the convict if he had exercised and restrained in exploiting the vulnerability of his victim to the offense,” he ruled.
