Man sentenced to death for killing Muslim cleric
A man was has been sentenced to death for killing moderate Muslim cleric, Sheikh Mohamed Idris, who was the chairman of Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya.
Mombasa High Court Judge Martin Muya handed down the sentence to Mohamed Sudi Said on Friday, saying he was satisfied the case against him had been proved beyond reasonable doubt.
The judge noted that Sheikh Idris was a Muslim preacher of moderate persuasion, a fact which did not go down well with radicalised youth hence he was a “marked man”.
“The person who fired the gun whose bullets snuffed the life out of him must have intended just that, to cause his death,’’ said Justice Muya. “His action was achieved by malice aforethought.”
The prosecution had proved that person to be the accused, said the judge.
The judge further said a pistol recovered from the accused placed him at the scene of the incident.
“HAKUNA HAKI”
Through his lawyer, Mr Chacha Mwita, the accused asked the court for leniency.
The judge said the law does not give room for any other sentence (except death) unless the Supreme Court makes a finding contrary to what exists.
Sheikh Idris was murdered on June 10, 2014 at Manyatta in Likoni. Immediately after the judgement, the accused shouted: “Hakuna haki (there is no justice)” before relatives started wailing and shouting, disrupting court proceedings for about five minutes.
Reacting to the judgement, Mr Sudi’s family said they would appeal against it.
“We are not satisfied with the court’s verdict. It is discriminatory,” said Mr Ayub Athman, Said’s brother.
He described his 44-year-old brother as a businessman who used to sell CDs to take care of his two wives and seven children and was a victim of circumstance.
