Man who defiled niece, infected her with HIV to spend 30 years in prison

A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for defiling his 10-year-old niece and intentionally infecting her with HIV.

Eldoret senior resident magistrate Daniel Sitati imposed the sentence on the man from Turbo in Uasin Gishu county after finding him guilty of the offence.

The accused, identified in court documents as CKC was convicted of defiling his niece on three separate occasions before the matter came to light.

“The court sentences you to serve 30 years in jail for the offence for which you were found guilty. You have 14 days to appeal,” Sitati ruled.

According to the charge sheet, the offence was committed at unknown dates in September 2023 at Chemoru village in Kaptebee location, Turbo subcounty.

The magistrate said the prosecution had proved its case through the testimony of three key witnesses, supported by a medical examination report from Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), which linked the accused to the crime.

“According to the law, it is illegal for a person who knows they have HIV to intentionally, knowingly and wilfully transmit HIV to a minor,” he said.

The court observed the offence attracts a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, but exercised leniency due to the accused’s health condition.

“Were it not for your health situation, the court would have handed you the maximum sentence for such an offence,” Sitati added.

Prosecutors told the court the accused lured the child to his house under the pretext of switching off a radio, then followed her inside, lifted her onto his bed and defiled her.

In her in-camera testimony, the child told the court her uncle abused her on three different occasions.

Her HIV status was discovered in 2023 after her father took the family for testing at Turbo Subcounty Hospital.

The results showed the child was HIV positive, while both parents tested negative.

The girl’s mother later questioned her, leading to the disclosure that she had been abused by her uncle. The matter was reported at Turbo police station, resulting in the suspect’s arrest.

In his mitigation, the accused claimed he had been framed by the child’s father due to a long-standing land dispute.

However, the prosecution maintained that medical evidence and witness testimony firmly linked him to the offence.