NAIROBI,Kenya, Feb, 16 – Issack Robow, a former driver attached at the Mandera county government was found guilty of abducting two cuban doctors, Dr Assel Herrera Correa and Dr Landy Rodriguez Hernadez as well as commissioning a terrorist act.
The incident which occurred in 2019 saw police officer Mutundo Kitambo attached to the Critical Infrastructure Unit in Mandera county killed.
He faced five counts and was found guilty on four including: the commissioning of a terrorist act, aiding and abetting a terrorist act, kidnapping and hostage-taking and obtaining registration by false pretences.
The court meanwhile found him not guilty of unlawfully being in the country, despite attempts to prove that he was a Somali national.
Appearing before Milimani Principal Magistrate Martha Nanzushi the accused was deemed guilty wth the court ruling that the prosecution had proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
In her findings the magistrate noted that according to the circumstantial evidence by the prosecution witnesses the driver aided the kidnap of the Cuban doctors by stopping the vehicle he was ferrying the doctors with.
He was the driver of a government issued vehicle registration number GKA 221U (a Toyota Hilux).
“Given the circumstance to run for his life as he did, but not after turning off the engine, in such a scenario, there is no possible way anyone would think of switching off the engine and engaging the hand brake as was evidence of the first respondent” ruled the magistrate.
It was the courts view that since the driver had some space as he stated in defense he could have rammed into the assailants vehicle which was smaller than his car hence the situation could have been different.
” The assailants vehicle was parked, if the driver speeded his vehicle the damage would not have been as fatal but at least he would have maybe distorted their plans” she ruled.
The accused had initially been arraigned and charged in 2019.
He was accused alongside others not before the court.
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