AP officer who killed lover slapped with life imprisonment

Administration police officer Patrick Nyapara at Kakamega High Court during judgment of his case on February 23, 2023. [Benjamin Sakwa, Standard] A police officer found guilty of murdering his former lover at her home in Navakholo Constituency, Kakamega County in 2019, has been handed a life sentence. Patrick Nyapara, an Administration Police officer, went to the armoury, took a gun and went to the house of Christine Maonga and shot her dead. Nyapara was to be sentenced last week but lack of the pre-sentencing report from the probation officer saw it moved to Thursday when the sentence was handed down to him. Justice William Musyoka said Nyapara, who was in charge of the armoury, acted against the law by failing to register the firearm before taking it and proceeding to the house of his victim where he shot her in the head. "This was a clear indication that he had a clear intent of killing the deceased," Justice Musyoka said as he sentenced Nyapara. "The accused person deserves the maximum penalty availability under the circumstances, notwithstanding that he is a young man and a first offender. The maximum sentence is death but the Murwatetu case declared the death sentence unconstitutional. That leaves the court with a life imprisonment sentence. I accordingly sentence the accused person Patrick Nyapara to serve life imprisonment for murdering Christine Maonga," said Musyoka. The judge said the pre-sentencing report by the probation officer paints a general picture that the accused person is generally humble. However, he said, the accused is a convict of murder and murdered someone in a deliberate act of taking away the life of another person. "The facts point to a deliberate and conscious act of causing death. In this case, the accused was on duty as an armourer and on the material day, he took a firearm that was in his custody and never recorded it and took a gun in the armoury which he did not record in the armourer papers and walked with it to the home of the deceased and fired a shot at her using it," said the judge. Justice Musyoka added: "It is important to note that he shot her in the head. It had a clear intent to cause death which points to a planned cold-blooded killing for which the perpetrator must pay an ultimate price so as to attorn for offence and act as a deterrent to him and others who may be of like-minded." The judge noted that Nyapara is a police officer whose role is generally to secure the community. "Acting in a manner that goes contrary to that amounts to a major breach and turns him into a protector who turns into a cold-blooded perpetrator who will generally receive little sympathy from the law," Justice Musyoka said. "The accused and the deceased had been in a relationship which had brought forth a child. The killing occurred before the said child. The accused breached the trust that the child had in him as her protector and that of her mother. To kill a mother in presence of her child is to visit the worst form of trauma to the child. Therefore, the accused person deserves a maximum penalty," said the judge. The victim's lawyer Grace Mburu pleaded with the court to hand Nyapara life imprisonment for breaching the trust of the deceased and their child as their protector. Ms Mburu noted that the accused person's action left the child traumatised. "He took the law into his own hands and took away the life of a person." "We are praying for a deterrent punishment to the accused person so that it can serve as an example to the public and those in the capacity to protect people not to take the law into their own hands despite what may have happened between the accused and the deceased," said Mburu. Defence lawyer Arembe Olaka had pleaded with the court to give his client a lenient sentence arguing he was the first offender. He said his client is the family's breadwinner and was remorseful, having regretted the heinous act. Nyapoara used a Ceska Pistol Number KEAPG 1411 to kill his victim on March 14 at her rental house. Until her death, Ms Maonga was an English and Literature teacher at Navakholo Secondary School. She had enrolled for a Master's Degree at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology by the time of her death. The police constable, who fled the scene after the incident, was arrested on March 16 at Nasira village in Nambale, Busia County, while trying to flee to Uganda. The family of the deceased, led by his father Fred Maonga, said the judgment was long overdue and that it has in one way brought the matter to closure. He said they feel justice has seen to be served. "Even though we cannot bring back our daughter, as a family, we are a bit relieved and our hearts are at peace. We believe the heart of our departed daughter will now rest in peace after a long journey of four years seeking justice," said Maonga.

AP officer who killed lover slapped with life imprisonment

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