Former Moi Highschool student behind the tragic 2017 fire tragedy that consumed 10 lives in Moi Girls high school was on Thursday sentenced to 5 years in prison by the Kajiado High court after she was found guilty for manslaughter.
The verdict was delivered virtually by Justice Stella Mutuku.
“I will not impose a non-custodial sentence to the accused because the offence of manslaughter is a serious one that needs one to serve a jail term “said Justice Mutuku.
According to Justice Mutuku, she considered the impact of statements made by parents of the victims, the probation officers report, the girl’s mitigation where she regretted her actions.
“The student regrets her actions and seeks leniency from the court. I have also taken into account her mitigation, the statement from diseased students’ families and pre-sentence report from the probation officer” noted the judge”.
Further Justice Mutuku lamented on the fact that no punishment would bring back the lost lives as the student committed the incident while she was 14 years old and was later found guilty in December 21, 2021 when she had attained 18 years.
Parents of the victims were, however, not satisfied by the verdict as one parent lamented on the fact that together with her family, they have been haunted by memories of losing their daughter and pray that no student commits such a crime in school again.
“We believed and trusted that the judge would hand the student whom they described as a killer, a heavier penalty including a life jail term,” said one parent.