Court says Oyamo lured Sharon Otieno to her killers at Graca Hotel
The judge ruled that the meeting was not meant to deliver money or a message, but was a trap to hand Sharon over to her killers.
Photo: Courtesy.
By Robert Mutasi
The High Court has found that former Migori Gov. Okoth Obado’s ex-personal assistant Michael Oyamo orchestrated the meeting that led to the abduction and murder of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno.
In a detailed judgment, Justice Cecilia Githua dismissed Oyamo’s defence as untruthful and inconsistent with evidence presented during the trial.
The court noted that Oyamo admitted he had worked as Obado’s personal assistant and bodyguard for about 10 years. The judge said his claim that he did not know Sharon or the circumstances around her killing was not believable.
According to the court, the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Oyamo convened the meeting at Graca Hotel in Rongo on Sept. 3, 2018, where Sharon met him in the company of a journalist identified in court as PW9.
Prosecution witnesses testified that Oyamo acknowledged the meeting and told them he had been sent by Obado to deliver money to Sharon. The court, however, found that explanation to be false.
The judge ruled that the meeting was not meant to deliver money or a message, but was a trap to hand Sharon over to her killers.
“The meeting was convened to deliver Sharon to her killers,” Justice Githua said.
The court said it was immaterial whether Oyamo boarded the vehicle used in the abduction at the hotel or at another point, saying evidence placed him at the scene during the critical moments when Sharon was seized.
The judge accepted the testimony of PW9, who told the court that shortly after the Graca Hotel meeting, unidentified men who had interacted with Oyamo abducted him and Sharon, sexually assaulted and killed her.
PW9 survived the attack and became a key state witness.
The court further noted that the questions the attackers asked Sharon and PW9 about her relationship with Obado and a story linking her to the governor showed a clear connection to Obado.
Although Obado was not physically present at Graca Hotel, the judge said he must have been aware of the meeting, since Oyamo himself testified he had been sent by the former governor.
The court also found that Oyamo tried to hide his identity by fraudulently acquiring an Airtel SIM card registered under another person’s name, despite owning a Safaricom line.
Justice Githua said the Airtel line was acquired days before the murder and was used exclusively to communicate with Sharon, in a deliberate attempt to facilitate the offence and evade detection.
Sharon, who was seven months pregnant, was abducted on Sept. 3, 2018. Her body was found the next day in Kodera Forest in Homa Bay County.
Obado, Oyamo and former Migori County clerk Caspal Obiero were on Wednesday convicted of murder after the court found they acted with common intention.
Their bond was cancelled and they were remanded in custody pending sentencing.
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