Two men earn 20 years in jail for gang-raping woman

West Pokot, Kenya: Two middle-aged men were Thursday sentenced to 20 years in jail each by a Kapenguria court after they were found guilty of gang-raping a woman.

Jackson Chelinganyang and Joseph Rianagura had been accused that on April 5, 2015, at around 8pm ain Chepkorniswo in West Pokot County, they gang-raped the woman.

“Each of you will spend 20 years in prison without any option of fine as the court has found you guilty. You have 14 days to appeal,” ruled Resident Magistrate Martin Wachira.

Night attack

The complainant narrated to the court how the two attacked her as they were returning from the market at around 8pm with her husband.

“They hit my husband with an object and he lost consciousness, tore my pant and started raping me in turns, and then stabbed my private parts with a knife. When I screamed, neighbours came and one of the accused was arrested by the Kenya Police Reservist,” she said.

The two were first arraigned in court on April 22, 2015, and have been in custody since they were not able to raise the bond of Sh100,000.

Before the sentence, prosecutor Humphrey Okumu had told the court that the two should be given a severe punishment as the offence was serious and contrary to section 10 of the Sexual Offence Act of 2006.

“Cases of rape and defilement are rampant in the area. Therefore, there is an urgent need to put in place a deterrence to address the issue, and the starting point is to make the sentence severe,” said Okumu.