Judge cuts short sex pest’s freedom, serves justice

Kenya: Many victims of sexual harassment have been downcast over the failure of the courts to punish the perpetrators of such crimes.

Rarely is there any recourse for victims of rape and defilement, after the key suspects are acquitted by the courts. What follows is a life of trauma and inexplicable psychological torture.

But that was not the case when an appeal against the acquittal of a man who defiled a 14-year-old girl three years ago came before the bench of Migori High Court Judge David Majanja.

On July 9, 2014, Migori Senior Principal Magistrate EM Nyaga, had set free one Victor Omondi who was accused of defiling the girl two years earlier at Kamanyakago Location in Migori.

But Justice Majanja overturned the judgement last week and handed Omondi 20 years in prison noting that there was overwhelming evidence that he had indeed defiled the girl; evidence which in his view the subordinate court had overlooked.

The landmark appeal, against Omondi’s acquittal, had been lodged by Migori-based Principal State Prosecuting Counsel Omwenga, on instructions from the office of the director of public prosecution.

Shocking details emerged at the High Court of how Omondi cornered the girl in her mother’s bedroom and inserted his fingers into her private parts, before she sneaked out and narrated the ordeal to her mother who had gone to fetch water.

Invalidate

Justice Majanja faulted the magistrate who acquitted the suspect over faults on the P3 Form and the post rape report form, which gave conflicting dates on when the incident was reported — arguing that this did not invalidate the fact that the girl was defiled.

“This fact does not lessen or in any way diminish the evidence recorded in the treatment notes which are evidence that she was treated so soon after she was defiled,” ruled the judge.

The judge also quashed the suspect’s defence that he had been framed by the girl’s mother after he rejected her sexual advances following her husband’s death.

This had been some of the evidence relied upon by the magistrate who acquitted the suspect.