A woman convict who had disappeared from the Kisumu High Court on March 21st after being found guilty of murder will be sentenced on Wednesday (today).
Martha Auma was convicted of strangling her husband Jared Otieno to death using a belt on the night of 26 May 2014.
Justice David Majanja found Auma culpable of the crime and dismissed her evidence which he termed not convincing.
Auma had earlier on told the court that she indeed committed the crime of strangling her husband but insisted that it was not intentional as she was forced into doing it by three gunned and masked men.
“They stormed into our house, gagged me, dragged my husband from the bathroom and at gunpoint told me to strangle him. They claimed my husband had defrauded them,” claimed Auma.
Justice Majanja however dismissed her pleas on grounds that there was no witness who could attest to that.
“Since the deceased and the accused live just by themselves in their house, it could be possible that the accused committed the crime with the help of three assailants,” Justice Majanja ruled.
After being directed to remain in custody and her bond being revoked, Auma swiftly walked out of the court and shortly after the Judge realised that she was not led into custody, a security search was staged but to no avail.
Her lawyer Steve Odumbe however presented her to court the following day (March 22) where he defend Auma’s actions stating that she was misled by the sentry present in the courtroom who purportedly told her to go and come back on the day of her sentencing.
The incident, according to the Court’s Deputy Registrar Pauline Mbulika was reported to the police and investigations launched in a move to discipline the security officers who are charged with manning the courtroom for being negligent at work.