Naftali Kinuthia jailed 40 years for killing Ivy Wangechi

Kinuthia was sentenced before the Eldoret High Court on Thursday, bringing the four-year murder trial to a close.

In his ruling, Justice Stephen Githinji stated that he had heard the suspect's plea, but the sentence was proportionate to the heinous crime for which he was found culpable.

Kinuthia, through his lawyer, expressed regret for the crime and claimed to have changed in the four years he had been in remand.

The 33-year-old was arrested after attacking his then-estranged lover with an axe outside the university.

During the trial, he told the court that despite spending a lot of money on Wangeci over the years, she rejected him because he was short, hugged another man in front of him, and made a lot of money from him, knowing she did not intend to pursue their relationship further.

Kinuthia testified in court that he continued to financially support Wangeci even after she became distant from him.

He stated that he had spent over Ksh. 100,000 on her and was in the process of reclaiming it from her parents after realising that their love was not blossoming.

He told Justice Stephen Githinji just before killing her that he had sent her Ksh. 7,000 for her birthday, but she had not invited him to the party.

He was not offended, he said, because he had been funding these parties for many years during their relationship.