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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 12351 (KLR)

Republic v Mulwa alias Moses

Republic v Mulwa alias Moses (Criminal Case 20 of 2019) [2026] KEHC 12351 (KLR) (30 July 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case 20 of 2019
Judge
["EN Maina"]

The court held that the prosecution evidence, taken as a whole, including the confession and circumstantial material, established a prima facie case under Section 306(2) CPC. The accused therefore had to be put on his defence, and detailed reasons were withheld in line with governing authority at this stage.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • No case to answer/prima facie case
  • Confession evidence
  • Circumstantial evidence
  • Doctrine of last seen
  • Section 306 criminal procedure code
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 11552 (KLR)

Republic v Karume

Republic v Karume (Criminal Case 19 of 2019) [2026] KEHC 11552 (KLR) (27 July 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case 19 of 2019
Judge
["AK Ndung'u"]

The prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the deceased died from violent knife-inflicted injuries, that there was no forced entry, that the deceased was last seen in the custody of the accused, that the accused vanished immediately after the killing, fled to Narok, was tracked by phone evidence, was later found with PW2's jacket, and made a confession. The circumstantial chain was complete, excluded innocence, and established malice aforethought from the nature of the injuries. The defence was internally inconsistent and did not raise reasonable doubt.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Circumstantial evidence
  • Doctrine of last seen
  • Malice aforethought
  • Confession evidence
  • Dna analysis
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 10492 (KLR)

Taboi & 2 others v Republic

Taboi & 2 others v Republic (Criminal Appeal E093 of 2022) [2026] KEHC 10492 (KLR) (9 July 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Appeal E093 of 2022
Judge
["REA Ougo"]

The appeal succeeded because the trial was rendered a mistrial by the magistrates’ failure to comply with section 200 of the Criminal Procedure Code after the case was handled by more than one magistrate without the appellants being informed of the right to recall witnesses. The court found that this procedural defect, together with the disorderly record, vitiated the proceedings. A retrial was declined because the case was old, witnesses might not recall events reliably, and the prosecution could unfairly fill gaps.

Source excerpt

  • Robbery with violence
  • Confession evidence
  • Identification by recognition
  • Fair trial rights
  • Right to counsel
  • Section 200 cpc non-compliance
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 9914 (KLR)

Mwabaya v Republic

Mwabaya v Republic (Criminal Appeal E116 of 2024) [2026] KEHC 9914 (KLR) (2 July 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Appeal E116 of 2024
Judge
["BK Njoroge"]

The conviction was unsafe because the prosecution failed to prove the essential ingredients of malicious damage to property; the charge sheet was defective, ownership of the damaged trees was not proved, no witness placed the appellant at the scene, and the trial court made a mistaken finding of confession. The appellate court therefore had no lawful basis to uphold the conviction or sentence.

Source excerpt

  • Malicious damage to property
  • Defective charge sheet
  • Proof of ownership
  • Appellate review
  • State concession
  • Probation sentence
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 9026 (KLR)

Republic v Awambo & another

Republic v Awambo & another (Criminal Case E013 of 2024) [2026] KEHC 9026 (KLR) (26 June 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case E013 of 2024
Judge
["DK Kemei"]

The court found that the prosecution proved death, unlawfulness, malice aforethought, and the participation of both accused through consistent evidence from PW1, PW2, PW3, the autopsy evidence, and call data. PW2’s account placed the 1st accused at the scene and the 2nd accused as the organizer who issued instructions and paid PW2, while PW1 and PW3 corroborated the planning and execution. The alibi defences were rejected because they did not shake the prosecution case beyond reasonable doubt.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Malice aforethought
  • Identification evidence
  • Recognition evidence
  • Alibi defence
  • Electronic evidence
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 8941 (KLR)

Republic v Kivati

Republic v Kivati (Criminal Case E008 of 2024) [2026] KEHC 8941 (KLR) (23 June 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case E008 of 2024
Judge
["JN Kamau"]

The prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the deceased died from strangulation, that the accused was the last person seen with her, that the accused’s confession was properly recorded and corroborated by recovery evidence, and that the accused’s alibi was not credible. The court therefore found the accused responsible for the unlawful killing with malice aforethought.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Confession evidence
  • Circumstantial evidence
  • Doctrine of last seen
  • Alibi defence
  • Malice aforethought
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Criminal law [2026] KECA 1149 (KLR)

Rono v Republic

Rono v Republic (Criminal Appeal 114 of 2017) [2026] KECA 1149 (KLR) (12 June 2026) (Judgment)

Court
Court of Appeal
Case number
Criminal Appeal 114 of 2017
Judge
["JM Mativo", "PM Gachoka", "MB Kairaria"]

The Court held that the prosecution proved murder beyond reasonable doubt: the medical evidence, the strangulation indicators, the appellant’s presence at the scene, the uncontroverted telephone interaction indicating culpability, and the surrounding circumstances formed a complete circumstantial chain establishing malice aforethought and unlawful causation. The Court therefore upheld the conviction but found the mandatory death sentence unlawful in its mandatory form and substituted it with a 45-year term from the date the appellant was first charged.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Circumstantial evidence
  • Malice aforethought
  • Confession evidence
  • Mandatory death sentence
  • Sentence reduction
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 7791 (KLR)

Republic v Ngugi

Republic v Ngugi (Criminal Case E002 of 2023) [2026] KEHC 7791 (KLR) (28 May 2026) (Ruling)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case E002 of 2023
Judge
["FN Muchemi"]

The prosecution evidence, taken at its highest, disclosed a prima facie case against the accused. The court held that it was not necessary at the no case to answer stage to undertake a detailed analysis of the evidence, because doing so would risk pre-empting the defence. The accused was therefore properly called upon to enter his defence.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Prima facie case
  • No case to answer
  • Confession evidence
  • Corroboration
  • Admissibility of unlawfully obtained evidence
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 10646 (KLR)

Republic v Kariuki

Republic v Kariuki (Criminal Case 10 of 2017) [2026] KEHC 10646 (KLR) (14 May 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case 10 of 2017
Judge
["EM Muriithi"]

The prosecution proved the death and cause of death, but failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused caused it. The case depended on weak circumstantial evidence, an unreliable last-seen theory spanning two days, hearsay accounts of an alleged confession, and the failure to call crucial witnesses and produce the alleged confession in admissible form. On that basis, conviction would have been unsafe.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Circumstantial evidence
  • Last seen doctrine
  • Confession evidence
  • Failure to call material witnesses
  • Adverse inference
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Criminal law [2026] KEHC 4669 (KLR)

Republic v Juma

Republic v Juma (Criminal Case E019 of 2022) [2026] KEHC 4669 (KLR) (10 April 2026) (Judgment)

Court
High Court
Case number
Criminal Case E019 of 2022

The court found that the accused unlawfully caused the death of the deceased by striking her with a panga on the head, and that the act was intentional or reckless, amounting to malice aforethought. The defences of self-defence and provocation were rejected due to lack of evidence of imminent threat or sufficient provocation. The principle of transferred malice applied even if the intended target was not the deceased.

Source excerpt

  • Murder
  • Malice aforethought
  • Transferred malice
  • Self-defence
  • Provocation
  • Confession evidence
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About this LexChat collection

Kenya decisions are organised by court, judge, legal area and indexed issue so a practitioner can move from a proposition to a citable authority with the surrounding context intact.

Source links and collection timestamps are retained alongside the indexed records.