Police officer has been found guilty of killing his ex-wife/The Star
An administration police officer who was charged with murdering his 26-year-old ex-wife in 2019 has been found guilty of murder.
Patrick Nyapara will be sentenced on Thursday after Justice William Musyoka found him guilty of murdering Christine Maonga by shooting her several times on January 14, 2019 in Navakholo, Kakamega County.
The sentence had been set for February 16 but was pushed forward for lack of a probation report on the suspect.
In its judgment, the court said the prosecution had convinced it by presenting 21 witnesses who placed the suspect at the scene of the crime.
Nyapara, in his defense, said he had not intended to pull the trigger on her wife.
“The accused person comes from Busia and not Kakamega County; therefore, I will give the probation the last chance. I will adjourn the matter to February 23, 2023, for a sentencing hearing. If no report will have been filed by then, I will proceed and give the verdict.
“The probation officer should take this sentiment seriously since this is not the first time we are having delays on the probation side, this case does not only involve the accused person, it has many people involved. By failing to file the report, as a probation officer, you are delaying justice from being served,” the judge said.
Nyapara, who had been deployed to man IEBC offices in Kakamega, is said to have murdered Christine, who was then a teacher at Navakholo Secondary School, after shooting several times at her house following a misunderstanding.
“I was at the scene. I saw the accused come to her house; I heard the gunshots or saw the officer fire the gun at the teacher. I saw her fall, and the accused fled the scene,” Maonga’s neighbor told the court.
They had been together since 2013 and had one child, aged six.
Sam Oduor is the editor-in-chief at the Western Kenya Times who leverages the power of the Internet in telling stories that shape opinions.
