Mombasa man sentenced to three life terms for defilement and pornography

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has scored a major victory in the fight against child sexual abuse after a 72-year-old Mombasa man was handed three life sentences for defiling minors and sharing pornographic materials.

At the Mombasa Law Courts, Senior Resident Magistrate David Odhiambo found Kazungu Kalume Begande guilty on five counts of defilement and one count of producing and sharing child pornography. 

Consequently, Begande was handed three life sentences for each of the three counts of defilement of the minors aged 6,9,12.

Further, the convict will serve 30 years for defilement of another minor aged 13.

The court heard that Begande exposed the four minors to pornographic material over a period of more than one year after defiling them.

The convict, who was also charged with alternative counts of committing an indecent act with a child, committed the crimes between 2022 and July 2023 in the Misufuni area, Likoni Sub-county.

The magistrate noted that Prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt through the testimonies of ten witnesses, including the minors, their parents, medical personnel and police officers.

The court further ruled that the prosecution’s case was reinforced by the confession the accused made at the time of his arrest before a senior police officer.

In the confession, the accused admitted to the crime, and the magistrate ruled that it was given voluntarily and in accordance with the law.

The court heard that the accused, who was a neighbour to the victims, lured the children to his house under the pretext of watching television before showing them pornographic videos and later sexually abusing them.

The children told the court that the accused would show them pornographic videos and later defile them, sometimes giving them Sh20 or Sh50 and warning them not to disclose the acts.

A clinical officer who produced medical evidence testified that examinations conducted on the minors’ revealed broken hymens, vaginal lacerations, discharge and other injuries indicative of defilement.

In his defence, the accused denied the charges and claimed that he had been framed following a disagreement over a debt with the mother of one of the complainants.

The sentences reflect the gravity of the crimes and the court’s commitment to protecting children.