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Teacher sentenced to three years in jail for slapping student


A secondary school teacher who slapped and ruptured the eardrum of a student will spend three years behind bars for the crime.

Wycliffe Kingori Mwangi was on Friday found guilty of assaulting the Form Two student at Kaaga Girls High School on March 24, 2014.

While sentencing the teacher, Chief Magistrate Lucy Ambasi said that she had no doubts that the accused assaulted the then minor which compelled her to undergo an operation to correct a partial hearing loss.

“I find the accused who has been charged for slapping the complainant thrice that led to secondary ear infection and subsequent partial hearing loss guilty of the offence,” said Ms Ambasi.

The school had accused the girl of practicing lesbianism, but the magistrate noted that she had not been previously indicted by the school of the same and was not given a chance to defend herself.

The magistrate also called out the school for failing to conduct investigations into the incident once it was reported and instead attempted to suspend the victim and 12 other students in an apparent cover-up.

LESBIANISM

She dismissed the evidence of the accused and two other teachers including the then deputy principal.

Instead, the magistrate found the evidence tendered by the victim, a former schoolmate and several of her classmates as credible and consistent with the incident.

According to witnesses, the student had been accused by her colleagues of allegedly peeping at them while leaving the bathroom.

When the student went to complain to the school administration, the teacher slapped her and took her to the principal’s office.

She later developed an infection but when she sought permission to go to hospital, the teachers at first claimed she was feigning sickness before they decided to suspend her and 12 others for engaging in lesbianism.

Ms Ambasi however spared the teacher from more serious charges of assault causing grievous harm and instead convicted him of simple assault.