Rectified typo leaves six in the dock

Former Cabinet Secretary for Lands Charity Ngilu (fourth right) in the dock with suspects in the Sh8 billion Karen case when they took a plea at the Milimani Court in Nairobi. [Photo: George Njunge/Standard]

A typing error by the Court of Appeal that could have seen six suspects walk free in a Karen land grab case has been rectified. Because of this correction, the trial of six suspects will proceed, even though former Lands Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu was acquitted on account of this error.

Ngilu’s criminal case was dropped by a consent registered at the Appellate Court after the State withdrew charges. However, when the order was presented in a lower court, the other suspects sought to use the same technicality that rescued Ngilu to seek freedom.