Man in handcuffs
A former Administration Police officer has been sentenced to 40 years in prison after the High Court in Nanyuki found him guilty of murdering a fellow officer in Maralal, Samburu County.
In a statement on Thursday, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) said the court convicted Patrick Marwa over the murder of Dancun Cheruiyot, an offence committed on May 4, 2019.
“The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has secured a 40-year prison sentence against Patrick Marwa, a former Administration Police Officer, following his conviction for the murder of Dancun Cheruiyot at Maralal town in Samburu County.
“In a matter prosecuted by Prosecution Counsels Esther Kimani, Jackson Motende and Maina Kimaru, the High Court in Nanyuki found Marwa guilty of the offence of murder contrary to Section 203 as read together with Section 204 of the Penal Code and sentenced him to serve 40 years’ imprisonment,” read the part of the statement.
According to the ODPP, Marwa, who was attached to Administration Police Line Two in Maralal, on May 4, 2019, reported to the armoury at about 5.30 p.m., where he was issued with a G3 rifle, serial number J54854, and 20 rounds of ammunition before proceeding for night duty.
The prosecution told the court that Marwa and Cheruiyot were waiting at the camp’s main gate for transport to their assigned duty station when the deceased, who was in charge of discipline at the camp, instructed Marwa to surrender his firearm after informing him that he would not be deployed to the China construction site.
The directive reportedly sparked an argument between the two officers. During the confrontation, the court heard, Marwa cocked his rifle and opened fire, shooting Cheruiyot ten times and killing him on the spot.
“Evidence presented before the court established that Marwa and the deceased, Dancun Cheruiyot, were waiting at the main gate for transport to their duty station when the deceased, who was in charge of discipline at the camp, instructed the accused to surrender his firearm after informing him that he would not proceed on duty at the China construction site,” ODPP stated.
After the shooting, Marwa handed the rifle to a fellow officer, who returned it to the armoury, before he was arrested and taken to Maralal Police Station, where the incident was officially reported.
Investigators who visited the scene recovered ten spent 7.62mm cartridge casings and the G3 rifle that had been issued to the accused.
Cheruiyot’s body was later taken to the Samburu County Referral Hospital mortuary, where a post-mortem examination confirmed he had sustained ten gunshot wounds.
In delivering the judgment, Justice A.K. Ndungu found that the prosecution had proved the charge of murder beyond reasonable doubt.
The judge held that witness testimony, forensic evidence from the scene and the post-mortem report established that Marwa acted with malice aforethought when he unlawfully caused Cheruiyot’s death.
Following the conviction, the court sentenced Marwa to 40 years’ imprisonment, bringing to a close a case that has been before the courts for more than seven years.
“Justice A.K Ndungu observed that the evidence adduced, including witness testimonies, the scene visit and the post-mortem report, established that the accused acted with malice aforethought in unlawfully causing the death of the deceased,” ODPP added.
