An Environment and Land Court judge has declared a widow the rightful owner of a prime Machakos plot following a property row.
Justice Anne Koross, sitting at the Machakos court, found that Christine Gendala trespassed on the contested property, ruling that Anne Gathoni Mbaabu was its legal owner.
The court issued a permanent injunction against the defendant and awarded general damages of Sh1.5 million, finding that Mbaabu held valid title to the land known as Mavoko Town Block 2/293.
The dispute began on September 28, 2023, when Mbaabu received a report that unidentified people had invaded her land.
The following day, her representatives found Gendala on the property accompanied by two armed men and a relative.
Mbaabu told the court she had enjoyed uninterrupted possession since purchasing the property with her late husband, Geoffrey Mbaabu M’mubongo, in February 1992.
The title was registered jointly in their names on February 10, 1992, and her husband died on March 6, 2023.
“The court was informed that the defendant had, among other actions, uprooted sisal plants, erected a steel structure on the property and prevented her from accessing it, causing her to report the matter to the police and was issued with an OB number,” the court documents show.
The pending sale of the property for Sh11 million per acre collapsed as a result.
Mbaabu alleged that Gendala erected a steel structure to block her access, leaving a warning sign scrawled on a tin structure that read, "this land is not for sale – beawere for con people".
The plaintiff sought a declaration that she is the legal owner of the suit property and that the defendant trespassed on it.
She asked for a permanent injunction to stop the defendant, her agents or assignees from interfering with the land.
She also claimed reimbursement of Sh50.6 million for unrealised proceeds from a collapsed sale, plus general damages for trespass and loss of business, costs and interest and any other just relief.
In her defence filed on June 15, 2025, Gendala denied being a trespasser.
“She maintained that she was not a trespasser and that her presence and developments on the suit property were lawful and within her rights as the beneficial and lawful registered owner and stated she employed caretakers to guard the suit property due to threats of encroachment by persons claiming ownership, including the plaintiff,” the court heard.
Gendala alleged that the plaintiff’s title was either invalid, superseded or fraudulently obtained.
However, neither the defendant nor her witnesses testified at the hearing, leaving her allegations unsubstantiated.
Mbaabu, testifying as the sole witness, produced original title deeds, official search certificates, and photographic evidence of the physical invasion.
The court also examined letters showing a blockaded deal where an intended buyer had agreed to purchase the land at Sh11,000,000 per acre before backing out due to the chaos on site.
Justice Koross found that the plaintiff’s evidence was uncontroverted and credible.
“The court is satisfied that the plaintiff is the registered owner of the suit property,” the judge stated.
“Trespass is an actionable offence per se,” the judge stated, while awarding general damages of Sh1.5 million.
However, the claim for Sh50.6 million in lost business from the collapsed sale was refused. The judge noted that the intended purchaser had suspended the deal partly due to questions over ownership, not solely because of the trespass.
The court issued declarations that Mbaabu is the legal owner and that Gendala trespassed. A permanent injunction now bars the defendant, her agents or anyone claiming under her from dealing with, transferring, constructing on or interfering with the property.
The defendant was also ordered to pay the plaintiff’s costs of the suit.
