Blow to Sonko as High Court overturns his acquittal in Ksh.20M graft case

Former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has suffered a blow after the High Court set aside his acquittal in a Ksh.20 million graft case.

This after Magistrate Douglas Ogoti on December 21, 2022 threw out the case and acquitted Sonko and his co-accused, businessman Antony Ombok, of 13 charges over lack of evidence.

High Court Judge Nixon Sifuna, in his ruling on Wednesday, directed that the matter be retried by another Magistrate.

"This case shall be retried by another Magistrate who shall start by making a fresh ruling on the basis of the evidence on the record,” ruled Justice Sifuna.

The judge further noted that Magistrate Ogoti erred in law when he acquitted Sonko and others in the case.

"The said ruling falls flat in its tummy....In arriving at a ruling on whether the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had made a prima facie case, each count and evidence ought to be considered and a conclusion given...the finding can't be in a general manner," Sifuna noted.

The Office of the DPP in 2022 filed an appeal challenging Sonko’s acquittal saying the magistrate, in making the judgment, relied on an old charge sheet that was filed in January 27, 2020 and disregarded the substituted one filed on September 7, 2020.

According to the DPP, Magistrate Ogoti hence erred in law by declaring that the charges were defective despite having admitted the amended charge sheet.

“The Learned Trial Magistrate erred in law and fact by failing to make a finding on each and every count as per the amended charge sheet of 7th September, 2020,” the DPP argued in the appeal, as submitted by Senior Assistant DPP Christine Nanjala then.

“The Learned Honourable Trial Magistrate erred in law and fact by failing to make a finding on Count No. 4, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 as per the amended charge sheet of 7th September, 2020.”

The appeal added: “The Learned Honourable Trial Magistrate erred both in law and fact by failing to analyze the evidence adduced by the 19 prosecution witnesses thereby arriving at an erroneous finding.”

The DPP hence wanted the lower court’s decision quashed and Sonko and his co-accused Obbok put on their defence as per the amended charge sheet.