- Murithi first beat his grandmother, Florence Kajira, on December 24, 2011, until she was unresponsive.
- He then turned on his grandfather, Ezekiel Njiru, assaulted him and poured chang'aa in his eyes, blinding him.
Image: FILE
James Murithi lived with his grandparents in Thaka Nithi, but suddenly turned on them with awful violence.
During Christmas season in 2011, he clobbered the elderly couple until they passed out.
Murithi first beat his grandmother, Florence Kajira, on December 24, 2011, until she was unresponsive. He then turned on his grandfather, Ezekiel Njiru, assaulted him and poured chang'aa in his eyes, blinding him. He cut the old man with a panga three times on the head, pierced his ears and the bridge of his nose.
On Christmas day, the wayward grandson attacked Kajira again, strangled and beat her up until she became unconscious.
The grandmother testified that the grandson accused her of stealing his mobile phone.
As a result of the assault, Kajira said she lost consciousness and only came to at Chogoria hospital.
Njiru testified that after beating up Kajira, Murithi assaulted him, poured chang'aa in his eyes and dragged him into a maize farm to finish him off.
He,too, regained consciousness at Chogoria Mission hospital where he was admitted.
At the magistrate’s court, Murithi admitted Kajira and Njiru were his grandparents but denied attacking them.
The man was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm and sentenced to life imprisonment.
His appeal at the High Court was dismissed. The evidence against Murithi were strong and the degree of his crime could not be downplayed, the judge ruled.
The convict proceeded to the Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the sentence. A three-judge bench hearing the case held on September 6 that Murithi's life sentence was merited.
“The appellant brutally assaulted his elderly grandparents who both sustained serious and life-changing injuries, which include causing physical impairment to [his grandmother] who has to use crutches to aid in her mobility, and blindness to [his grandfather],” the judgement reads.
“We find that the sentence imposed by the trial court and upheld by the first appellate court was lawful and was neither harsh nor manifestly excessive. The appellant does not deserve clemency from us. Accordingly, we have no reason to interfere with the sentence imposed on the appellant and upheld by the first appellate court.”