Former Migori Governor Zachariah Okoth Obado has been convicted of the murder of Sharon Otieno, with the High Court finding that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that he orchestrated the killing of the Rongo University student who was carrying his child.
Delivering judgment on Thursday at the Milimani High Court, Justice Cecilia Githua found Obado guilty alongside his former personal assistant Michael Oyamo and former Migori County employee Caspal Obiero, concluding that the three acted with a common intention in the commission of the offence.
In a detailed judgment, the court held that Obado had a compelling motive to eliminate Sharon to prevent details of their relationship and her pregnancy from becoming public, thereby shielding himself from political embarrassment and reputational damage.
Rejecting Obado’s defence that he had accepted Sharon’s pregnancy and continued supporting her after ending their relationship, Justice Githua said the evidence presented during the trial painted a different picture.
“My thorough analysis of the evidence adduced by both the prosecution and the defense shows that the first accused’s claim that he had accepted the deceased’s pregnancy or that he was comfortable with it… was, in my considered opinion, actually not sincere and was not true.”
The judge found that testimony from prosecution witnesses, including Sharon’s mother, established that Obado had pressured Sharon to terminate the pregnancy and had allegedly given her KSh30,000 for that purpose, but she declined after consulting her mother.
The court also found that although Obado claimed his relationship with Sharon was already known publicly, the evidence showed he was determined to prevent further disclosure.
Justice Githua cited the testimony of prosecution witness PW9, who told the court that after a meeting, Obado personally instructed him not to reveal Sharon’s pregnancy.
“The Governor then escorted us outside the main house. We stood at the staircase. He bade us goodbye and promised to keep in touch after instructing me not to tell anybody about Sharon’s pregnancy.”
The judge noted that this evidence was not expressly challenged during the trial.
The court further relied on evidence that the second accused had sought access to mobile phones belonging to Sharon and another witness because they allegedly contained information that could expose the governor through the media.
Justice Githua rejected the defence’s argument that the money Obado sent to Sharon was intended for her welfare, finding instead that the payments were designed to discourage her from making their relationship public.
“I am persuaded to agree with the prosecution’s submissions that the various amounts of money conveyed from the 1st Accused to the deceased… were not genuinely intended to promote her well-being, but were designed to contain, to manage, and to delay or to make Sharon abandon her intention to publicize her affair with the 1st Accused.”
The court concluded that Obado had a strong personal and political motive to have Sharon killed.
“On the totality of the evidence adduced in this case, it is my considered view that the 1st Accused had a very strong motive to unlawfully end Sharon’s life to ensure that his illicit affair with her was not widely publicized through the print media, in order to save himself from possible public embarrassment and reputational harm, and to safeguard his political standing.”
The judge added that Obado stood to benefit most from Sharon’s death because it would prevent public disclosure of the affair.
“There is no doubt that the 1st Accused would have been the ultimate beneficiary of such a plot.”
Justice Githua further found that Obado used his position as Migori Governor to enlist the assistance of his co-accused in executing the plan.
The court held that the evidence established the three acted in concert, with Obado financing the murder, Oyamo playing a key role in its execution, and Obiero participating in concealing the crime. The judge ruled that their actions demonstrated a common intention and amounted to malice aforethought.
The court also rejected the argument that Obado’s presence in Nairobi on the day Sharon was killed absolved him of criminal responsibility, finding that the evidence showed he participated in planning and facilitating the murder despite not being at the scene.
Following the conviction, Justice Githua cancelled the bonds previously granted to Obado, Oyamo and Obiero and ordered that they be remanded in custody.
The court directed that pre-sentence and victim impact assessment reports be prepared within 21 days before mitigation and sentencing.
“Pending that mention day, the accused persons shall be remanded in custody as their bonds have been cancelled,” the judge ordered.
Sharon Otieno was abducted and murdered in September 2018 while pregnant, in a case that drew nationwide attention and became one of Kenya’s longest-running murder trials. The three convicted men will remain in custody pending mitigation and sentencing.
