HELMUTH RAME V. REPUBLIC

RULING OF THE COURT

Helmuth Rame, the applicant herein, is the accused person before the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Nairobi in CMCC No. 2261 of 2005. He was arraigned before that court on a charge of conspiracy to defraud contrary to section 317 of the Penal Code, as well as on three counts of obtaining money by false pretences contrary to section 313 of the Penal Code. His trial proceeded in the normal course until the close of the prosecution case, after which Githua, SPM (as she was then), ruled on the 29^th December, 2010 that the applicant be put on his defence. After several mentions, during which the hearing never proceeded, the prosecution, through Principal State Counsel, Mr. Joseph Gikonyo applied to withdraw the case against the applicant under section 87 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The complainant, through his advocate Mr. Charles Kanjama, opposed this application. The trial court eventually declined to allow the withdrawal of the charges. The court also ordered that th…