The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has secured a 15-year prison sentence for Lawrence Gesore Sagero, who was convicted of murdering his wife, Nancy Mongina, in Nyamira County.
Nyamira High Court Judge Lady Justice T. W. Cherere sentenced Sagero after finding that the prosecution had proved the murder charge beyond reasonable doubt. The case arose from the killing of Mongina on April 18, 2024, at approximately 9am in Borioba Village, Borangi Location, Nyamira North Sub-County.
Sagero denied the murder charge during the trial, prompting the prosecution, led by Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Joel Kibet Chirchir, to present evidence linking him to the killing.
The prosecution called six witnesses, including police officers, a medical professional and a government analyst, to establish the circumstances surrounding Mongina’s death and the evidence connecting Sagero to the offence.
According to the court proceedings, Mongina was found dead on a bed inside the bedroom of the house she shared with Sagero. Police officers who responded to the incident observed injuries on her head before securing the scene for investigations.
A post-mortem examination established that Mongina died from severe head injuries caused by blunt force trauma. The medical findings showed that she had sustained multiple skull fractures and extensive bleeding inside the brain, resulting in cardiovascular arrest.
The prosecution also presented forensic evidence from the Government Chemist. Analysis established that bloodstains recovered from three broken wooden sticks found near the body had DNA profiles matching Mongina’s blood sample.
The court considered the medical findings, forensic evidence and circumstances in which the body was discovered in determining whether the prosecution had established the accused’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Sagero gave sworn testimony in his defence, telling the court that he had attended a funeral vigil on the night before his wife’s body was discovered. However, Justice Cherere found that the prosecution evidence displaced his alibi and established his responsibility for the killing.
In its judgment delivered in July 2026, the court found that all the essential elements of murder had been established, including the unlawful killing, the accused’s responsibility and malice aforethought.
In determining the sentence, Justice Cherere considered the gravity of the offence alongside the mitigating circumstances presented before the court.
“Having balanced the gravity of the offending conduct against the mitigating circumstances, the Court considers that a substantial custodial sentence is warranted, but that the mitigation justifies a sentence below the maximum prescribed by law,” the judge ruled.
The court consequently sentenced Sagero to 15 years’ imprisonment for murder. The convict has 14 days within which to appeal the sentence.
