{"id":118904,"date":"2025-07-28T11:03:56","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T11:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/07\/28\/stephen-munyakho-kenyan-freed-from-saudi-jail-arrives-home-tonight\/"},"modified":"2025-07-28T11:03:56","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T11:03:56","slug":"stephen-munyakho-kenyan-freed-from-saudi-jail-arrives-home-tonight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/stephen-munyakho-kenyan-freed-from-saudi-jail-arrives-home-tonight\/","title":{"rendered":"Stephen Munyakho, Kenyan freed from Saudi jail, arrives home tonight"},"content":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 28 \u2014 Stephen Munyakho, a Kenyan national who had been sentenced to death for manslaughter in Saudi Arabia, is expected to arrive back in the country at 11pm Monday on a deportation flight from Jeddah.<\/strong><\/p>\n

His return marks the culmination of months of sustained diplomatic efforts and a nationwide fundraising campaign.<\/p>\n

Munyakho\u2019s release was made possible after the family of the deceased in the case accepted diyya<\/em> (blood money) amounting to approximately Sh129 million, deferring the death sentence handed down in 2024.<\/p>\n

In a statement issued by the Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Prime CS Musalia Mudavadi expressed gratitude to all those who played a part in securing Munyakho\u2019s freedom.<\/p>\n

\u201cImmediately when he was given a death sentence, Dr. Mudavadi officially wrote to the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, intervening on behalf of Mr. Munyakho, and the execution was deferred,\u201d the Ministry stated, detailing the efforts that led to his release.<\/p>\n

\u201cPCS thanked H.E. President William Ruto, who intervened by speaking directly with Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, ruler of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, requesting a delay in the execution as Kenya pursued the matter diplomatically.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ministry recognized efforts by the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (SUPKEM), the Kenyan Muslim community, the Muslim World League, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, and ordinary Kenyans who contributed both financially and through prayer.<\/p>\n

Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing\u2019oei was also commended for his unrelenting diplomatic push, along with the Bring Back Stevo Campaign led by Joseph Odindo.<\/p>\n

He praised Munyakho\u2019s family, particularly his mother, Dorothy Kweyu, for their unwavering determination and resilience throughout the ordeal.<\/p>\n

Mudavadi noted that the government of Saudi Arabia had demonstrated goodwill and cooperation, reaffirming the warm and respectful ties between Nairobi and Riyadh.<\/p>\n

Emergency travel document <\/h2>\n

Munyakho\u2019s release was confirmed on July 22, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating that an Emergency Travel Document had been issued to facilitate his return after his passport expired during his lengthy incarceration.<\/p>\n

He was convicted in 2013 for the killing of a Yemeni colleague at a Red Sea resort where he worked as a warehouse manager.<\/p>\n

According to his family, the fatal incident occurred after Munyakho was attacked with a letter opener and retaliated using the same weapon.<\/p>\n

Despite a 2014 appeal that reduced the severity of the charge, the death sentence remained in place under Saudi Arabia\u2019s legal framework.<\/p>\n

His execution was initially scheduled for May 2024 but was postponed twice following diplomatic interventions by the Kenyan government.<\/p>\n

Eventually, Kenyan diplomats in Riyadh persuaded the victim\u2019s family to accept diyya<\/em>, a form of compensation permitted under Islamic law that can allow for forgiveness or a reduced sentence in capital cases.<\/p>\n

Diyya<\/em> is recognized in around 20 countries across Africa and the Middle East and is commonly used in cases involving murder, injury, or property damage.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 28 \u2014 Stephen Munyakho, a Kenyan national who had been sentenced to death for manslaughter in Saudi Arabia, is expected to arrive back in the country at 11pm Monday on a deportation flight from Jeddah. His return marks the culmination of months of sustained diplomatic efforts and a nationwide fundraising campaign. Munyakho\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-118904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118904","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118904"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118904\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}