Appeal Court upholds 25-year jail term for Mukono witchdoctor
Court ruled over the witchdoctor convicted for murder of a six-year-old boy. PHOTO/FILE
What you need to know:
- On July 16, 2009, six-year-old Emmanuel Kironde disappeared from his home and was found lying in a pool of blood near his grandmother's home, prosecution states.
The Court of Appeal has ordered a witchdoctor to serve the 25-year jail term for murder of a six-year-old in Namwezi Village, Mbiko Sub-county in Buikwe District.
Judges dismissed an appeal in which Antony Sendikadiwa and the late Muzamiru Mukalazi were challenging the punishment handed to them January 11, 2013 by High Court judge, Justice Vincent Zehurikize.
Both Sendikadiwa and Mukalazi who died from prison were renowned traditional healers convicted and sentenced jointly but Ivan Nyombi was set free by court on grounds of ‘‘lack of sufficient evidence against him in connection
Seeking a court reversal, the appellants faulted ‘‘Justice Zehurikize for failing to evaluate the evidence on record, sentencing them to 25yrs which was harsh in the circumstances, failing to find the prosecution weaknesses and finding them guilty of murder with no circumstantial evidence.’’
However, three justices Elizabeth Musoke, Cheborion Barishaki and Hellen Obura November 11 upheld that the sentence imposed on Sendikadiwa was consistent with sentences imposed in previously decided murder cases.
“The sentences are arguably on the more lenient side of the sentencing range in murder cases. The facts of those cases which were brought out in the respondents’ submissions are comparable to those of this case. The range of sentences imposed in those cases was between 25 years to life imprisonment,” the judges ruled.
The justice also agreed to the submissions of both the state and lawyers of Nyombi that the evidence against him was insufficient to form a basis for conviction thus quashing his conviction and sentence.
“The only evidence against the third appellant (Nyombi) was that he was found at the first appellant’s (Sendikadiwa) home when investigating police officers followed the blood trail to that home. We accept counsel for the appellants’ submission that the third appellant may have been an innocent visitor to the first appellant,” the justice ruled.
“The learned trial judge therefore erred to convict the third appellant. We therefore quash the decision to convict the third appellant and set aside the sentence that was imposed on him,” they added.
On July 16, 2009, six-year-old Emmanuel Kironde disappeared from his home and was found lying in a pool of blood near his grandmother's home, prosecution states.
It was prosecution evidence that Sendikadiwa and Mukalazi were seen near the house where Kironde lived with his grandmother earlier on the day that he was murdered.
