Let him ‘rot in jail’, wife tells appeal court
By Monica Kagia
The wife of a Muslim cleric who is serving a life imprisonment for sodomising his stepson has asked the High Court in Malindi to let her husband rot in jail.
With tears rolling down her cheeks, the woman told judge Reuben Nyakundi that Imam Omar Said Omar, betrayed their six-year marriage by sodomising her son.
She asked the court to uphold ruling of a lower court judgement, which found the cleric guilty of the offence.
Malindi Senior Principal Magistrate Silvia Wewa sentenced Imam Omar to life imprisonment on November 2018 after he found guilty of the sexual offence.
He filed an appeal against the case.
The mother of the boy asked the judge to ensure justice for her son, saying his life had been ruined by a person who called him father and looked upon him for love, protection and help.
The woman, who was making her final submission on the appeal case, said her son is still traumatised and does not like to associate with grown-up men as memories of the assault are still fresh in his mind.
‘’I want the court to deliver the harshest penalty, he should rot in jail,” she said.
The court was told that the cleric committed the offence on March 2016.
Prosecution told the court that the Imam sodomised his stepson three times and threatened him of dire consequences if he dared to expose his acts.
Further, the documents shows that at times the man would give the stepson Sh10 so as to buy his silence.
The lower court in its verdict said the Imam lacked remorse for his action and betrayed the trust of his child who looked upon him for care, love, shelter, food and education.
