By Dorothy Musyoka
Jackton Odhiambo has been sentenced to 50 years in prison by the Eldoret High Court after being found guilty of the brutal murder of LGBTQ activist Edwin Kiptoo, widely known as Chiloba.
According to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP), the judgment, delivered brings closure to a case that shocked the nation and drew widespread attention both locally and internationally.
The court established that the murder occurred between December 31, 2022, and January 3, 2023.
“The court found Odhiambo guilty of killing Kiptoo in an incident that occurred between December 31, 2022, and January 3, 2023, shocking both the local and national communities,” stated the ODPP.
In delivering his verdict, Hon. Justice Nyakundi described the evidence presented by the prosecution as “overwhelming,” leaving no room for doubt regarding Odhiambo’s culpability.
However, he explained that since no executions have been carried out in Kenya since 1986, sentencing the accused to death would have been redundant.
Similarly, the uncertainty surrounding the definition of a life sentence made that option less appropriate.
“In his ruling on the sentence, His Lordship stated that the facts of the case presented the rarest of the rare to warrant the death sentence. He would have sentenced the accused to death but for the fact that, since 1986, death-row convicts have not been executed,” explained the ODPP.
The ruling highlighted the complexity of sentencing in Kenya’s current judicial context but affirmed the court’s commitment to justice.
The prosecution, led by counsels Mark Mugun and Ms. Sidi Kirenge, welcomed the judgment, noting that it delivered justice for the late Kiptoo and his grieving family.
The murder of Chiloba, a prominent LGBTQ rights activist, sparked outrage and renewed calls for justice and protection of marginalized communities in Kenya.
Chiloba’s body was found early January 2023 in a metal box, dumped on the roadside near the western Kenyan town of Eldoret.