On September 3, 2018, Sharon Belyne Otieno’s life took a devastating turn after she met Michael Oyamo, then the personal assistant to former Migori Governor Okoth Obado.
Sharon, a 26-year-old Rongo University student who was about seven months pregnant, had reportedly been seeking support from Obado over her pregnancy. According to evidence presented during the trial, the two were in a relationship, and Obado was later established through DNA evidence to be the father of Sharon’s unborn child.
Sharon met Nation Media Group journalist Barrack Oduor after receiving a call from Oyamo, who said he had a message from Obado.
The two met Oyamo at Gracia Hotel in Rongo before being directed to a waiting vehicle.
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What happened next became the centre of a murder case that would run for years.
The abduction and Oduor’s daring escape
According to evidence later presented in court, Oyamo suggested that they move to another location.
Once the vehicle left, Oyamo reportedly got out before the other men entered the vehicle. Sharon and Oduor were then held inside.
Oduor eventually made a desperate escape by jumping from the moving vehicle.
Sharon, however, remained behind.
After escaping, Oduor alerted authorities, setting off investigations into Sharon’s whereabouts.
Her body was later discovered in the Kodera Forest/Owade area in Homa Bay County.
A postmortem examination found that she had died from strangulation and excessive bleeding caused by stab wounds. Her unborn child also died.
The discovery transformed what had initially been reported as an abduction into a murder investigation that would attract national attention.
Obado, Oyamo, and Obiero charged
Investigators soon turned their attention to people linked to Obado.
Oyamo and Caspal Obiero, a Migori County official, were arrested alongside other suspects, while Obado was later taken into custody.
On September 24, 2018, Obado appeared before the High Court and was charged with Sharon’s murder alongside Oyamo and Obiero. A second murder count concerning Sharon’s unborn child was also brought against Obado.
All three denied the charges.
Obado was eventually released on a Sh5 million bond, while Oyamo and Obiero were initially denied bail before successfully appealing and securing release on Sh1 million bond each.
A case that stretched for years
The murder case did not move quickly.
Pre-trial proceedings dragged on, with the accused making several applications. Among them was a request by Oyamo and Obiero seeking the recusal of Justice Jessie Lessit, arguing that they feared they would not receive a fair trial.
The application was rejected in 2019 after the judge found that there were no reasonable grounds demonstrating bias or a conflict of interest.
The substantive trial eventually began in July 2021 before Justice Cecilia Githua.
Over the following years, the prosecution presented evidence involving phone records, financial transactions, witness accounts, forensic evidence and the vehicle allegedly used during Sharon’s abduction.
42 witnesses testify
The prosecution’s case was largely circumstantial and relied on evidence that investigators said connected the accused to events surrounding Sharon’s disappearance and death.
Among those who testified was journalist Barrack Oduor, whose escape from the vehicle became one of the key events in the prosecution’s account.
Taxi driver Jackson Gombe also testified about events surrounding the movement of Sharon, although aspects of his evidence were challenged during cross-examination.
By the time the prosecution closed its case in June 2024, 42 witnesses had testified.
The investigating officer also told the court that a tracker fitted to a vehicle linked to Obiero’s wife had been tampered with on September 3, 2018—the same day Sharon was abducted—and only resumed working the following day.
The accused fight back
After the prosecution closed its case, the defence challenged the evidence and argued that the prosecution had not established a sufficient connection between the accused and Sharon’s killing.
In January 2025, the court ruled that the three men had a case to answer, paving the way for the defence stage.
Oyamo took the witness stand and admitted that he had met Sharon shortly before her disappearance. However, he denied having any role in planning or carrying out her murder.
The defence also disputed the prosecution’s interpretation of phone records and other circumstantial evidence.
The court was ultimately left to determine whether the evidence formed an unbroken chain strong enough to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
July 2026: The guilty verdict
After years of testimony, applications and submissions, the case reached its defining moment on July 23, 2026.
Justice Cecilia Githua found Okoth Obado, Michael Oyamo and Caspal Obiero guilty of Sharon Otieno’s murder.
The court held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and found that the circumstantial evidence sufficiently connected the three men to the killing.
The judge also found that Oyamo played a role in arranging the meeting at Gracia Hotel that eventually led to Sharon’s abduction.
In Obado’s case, the court considered evidence surrounding his relationship with Sharon, her pregnancy, money sent to her and promises allegedly made to her before her death.
The court rejected key aspects of the defence case and convicted the former governor.
Now, the wait for punishment is over
Following the convictions, the court cancelled the three men’s bonds and ordered them to remain in custody pending sentencing.
Pre-sentence reports were subsequently prepared, with the court considering information about the circumstances of the offence, the accused persons and the impact Sharon’s death had on her family.
Obado has asked the court for leniency, pointing to factors including his age, health, lack of previous convictions and the long period the case has taken.
According to the probation report, Sharon’s family told probation officers that they had no objection to a lenient sentence and remained open to reconciliation.
September 16, 2026: The sentencing stage
More than eight years after Sharon’s death, the case has now reached another major chapter.
The High Court at Milimani is hearing mitigation submissions before determining the sentences for Obado, Oyamo and Obiero.
Unlike the previous stage, where the court was determining whether the three men were guilty, the question before the court now is the punishment to impose following their convictions.
For Sharon’s family, the proceedings mark another significant moment in a case that began with a mysterious disappearance in September 2018 and went on to become one of Kenya’s most closely followed murder trials.
After years of waiting for the verdict, the families and the public are now waiting to see what sentences the court will impose.
