Obado tells court he supported Sharon Otieno after breakup

Former Migori Governor Okoth Obado has told the High Court that he continued to support slain Rongo University student Sharon Otieno even after their romantic relationship ended in March 2018.

Appearing before Justice Cecilia Githua for the second day of his defence, Obado revealed the intimate details and financial transactions between them in an emotional testimony.

The former county boss on Thursday, April 24, 2025, tendered personal text messages exchanged between him and Sharon, aiming to refute the prosecution's claim that he orchestrated her murder due to discomfort over her pregnancy.

"I did not kill her. I was still supporting her during the pregnancy and even after we broke up in February and March 2018 until she was killed," Obado said under re-examination by his lead counsel, Roger Sagana.

He disclosed that he regularly sent money to Sharon, including through intermediaries such as his former aide and the now-deceased MCA Lawrence Mula.

"She once texted me saying: 'Thank you, I have received the Sh100,000 you sent me,'" Obado stated, presenting a message dated August 17, 2018, just weeks before Sharon was abducted and brutally killed.

Sharon, who was seven months pregnant at the time of her death, was allegedly carrying Obado's child.

Her body was found in a thicket in Homa Bay County in September 2018 with multiple stab wounds, leading to a murder trial that has gripped the nation.

Obado said he ended the romantic relationship with Sharon around February or March 2018, not due to public pressure or her pregnancy, but due to what he termed as "inconveniences."

"I decided to end it because of the inconsistency. My lady, I explained here that even after terminating the relationship, I was still giving her money for her welfare and the child she was carrying for me," Obado told the judge.

"The relationship was terminated long before the public came to know about it. It wasn't about the pregnancy as alleged by the prosecution. When she told me about the pregnancy, I accepted it."

He told the court that before the breakup, he had been supporting Sharon to grow her business, but after they broke up, the level of assistance reduced to the mere basics of upkeep.

" But l still had intentions to help Sharon settle down, even planning to buy land and build a house for her. This was just to settle her for the child she was carrying for me, and I wanted to be a responsible person by ensuring she settles comfortably," Obado told the judge.

"Initially, she wanted a house in Nairobi or Kisumu, but I was comfortable with a budget of around Sh3.5 million," he testified.

The former county boss also told the court that he gave Sharon money to leave her mother's house and take out health insurance.

Obado insisted that the nature of their relationship was not a secret, saying it was known by Sharon's family, his own family, including his wife Hellen Adhiambo, and even his staff.

In his defence, Obado stated that the investigating officer, Nicholas Ole Sina, in his evidence before the court, also confirmed that the love affair was widely known and that Obado continued to provide financial assistance to Sharon after the breakup.

The prosecution has argued that Obado was the mastermind behind Sharon's murder, motivated by fear of public embarrassment and political fallout due to her pregnancy.

In response to the allegations by the prosecution, Obado said he neither killed Sharon nor did he send his PA, Michael Oyamo, who is the second accused.