1. Through information dated 27 th March, 2023, the court was made aware of the allegation that Kamau Ndirangu, Accused, murdered Esther Wambui Mwangi (deceased) on 6 th February, 2022 at around 2130hrs at Jumatatu in Kabazi area in Subukia Sub-County within Nakuru County.
2. In the matter PW2 Zachariah Ngooro Maina a bodaboda operator carried the Accused and his lover (deceased) persons he knew before. He transported them home and left them by the roadside, some approximately 50 kilometers away from the home of the Accused.
3. The following day the body of the deceased was found lying along a footpath with some clothes ‘aside’. Also found was a used condom. The postmortem carried out revealed the cause of death to have been head injury with bilateral posterior cerebellar hemorrhage secondary to head trauma as well as hyppordemia secondary to extensive subfacial hemorrhage of bilateral lower limbs secondary to blunt force trauma.
4. At the close of the prosecution’s case, to place the Accused on his defence, the prosecution is obligated to establish a prima facie case against him. A prima facie case was discussed in Bhatt v Republic [1987] EA 232 as follows;
“Remembering that the legal onus is always on the prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, we cannot argue that a prima facie case is merely one which on full consideration might possibly be thought sufficient to sustain a conviction. This is perilously near suggesting that the court could not be prepared to convict if no defence is made, but rather hopes the defence will fill the gaps in the prosecution case, nor can we argue that the question whether there is a case to answer depends only on whether there is “some evidence irrespective of its credibility or weight sufficient to put the accused on his defence.”
A mere scintilla of evidence can never be enough nor can any amount of worthless discredited evidence… It may not be easy to define what is meant by prima facie case but at least it must mean one on which a reasonable tribunal properly directing its mind to the law and the evidence could convict if no explanation is offered by the defence.”
5. An evaluation of the evidence on record points at the Accused as the last person who was seen with the deceased, therefore, he must explain what happened. For that reason, I place him on his defence as required by Section 306(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
6. It is so ordered.
2. In the matter PW2 Zachariah Ngooro Maina a bodaboda operator carried the Accused and his lover (deceased) persons he knew before. He transported them home and left them by the roadside, some approximately 50 kilometers away from the home of the Accused.
3. The following day the body of the deceased was found lying along a footpath with some clothes ‘aside’. Also found was a used condom. The postmortem carried out revealed the cause of death to have been head injury with bilateral posterior cerebellar hemorrhage secondary to head trauma as well as hyppordemia secondary to extensive subfacial hemorrhage of bilateral lower limbs secondary to blunt force trauma.
4. At the close of the prosecution’s case, to place the Accused on his defence, the prosecution is obligated to establish a prima facie case against him. A prima facie case was discussed in Bhatt v Republic [1987] EA 232 as follows;
“Remembering that the legal onus is always on the prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, we cannot argue that a prima facie case is merely one which on full consideration might possibly be thought sufficient to sustain a conviction. This is perilously near suggesting that the court could not be prepared to convict if no defence is made, but rather hopes the defence will fill the gaps in the prosecution case, nor can we argue that the question whether there is a case to answer depends only on whether there is “some evidence irrespective of its credibility or weight sufficient to put the accused on his defence.”
A mere scintilla of evidence can never be enough nor can any amount of worthless discredited evidence… It may not be easy to define what is meant by prima facie case but at least it must mean one on which a reasonable tribunal properly directing its mind to the law and the evidence could convict if no explanation is offered by the defence.”
5. An evaluation of the evidence on record points at the Accused as the last person who was seen with the deceased, therefore, he must explain what happened. For that reason, I place him on his defence as required by Section 306(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
6. It is so ordered.