NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 18 — Two men have been sentenced to death after a court in Meru County found them guilty of robbery with violence in an attack that left a woman injured and robbed of cash and household goods.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) said Douglas Muriithi and Antony Mugendi were convicted over the September 6, 2024 incident in Maua Location, Igembe South Sub-County.
According to prosecutors, the two men, armed with pangas, metal rods and timber, attacked the victim, identified as Janice Gacheri, at around 11.40pm.
They stole Sh5,700 in cash, 87 kilograms of sugar valued at Sh13,050, and 17 kilograms of onions worth Sh850 — bringing the total value of the stolen items to Sh19,600.
“The attackers, armed with dangerous weapons, accosted the victim and robbed her of the items,” the ODPP said.
Commutation
The court heard that the victim was injured during the incident, a factor that aggravated the offence.
It ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, leading to the conviction and sentencing of the two accused. The case was prosecuted by Kelvin Gitonga.
Despite the sentence, Kenya has not carried out an execution since 1987 and maintains a longstanding practice of commuting death sentences to life imprisonment.
In 2016, then-President Uhuru Kenyatta commuted the sentences of 2,747 death row inmates to life terms.
The legal landscape surrounding capital punishment has also evolved in recent years.
In the landmark Francis Karioko Muruatetu v. Republic ruling, the Supreme Court of Kenya declared the mandatory death penalty for murder unconstitutional, sparking broader debate on sentencing reforms.
Although the decision did not automatically apply to offences such as robbery with violence, the court signaled that similar constitutional challenges could produce comparable outcomes.
Subsequent directions issued in 2021 clarified that, if retained, the death penalty should be reserved for the “rarest of rare” cases involving intentional and aggravated killings.
Efforts to abolish capital punishment altogether remain ongoing, with several bills before Parliament seeking to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment.