JAMES NGANGA NDUNGU V. REPUBLIC

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The appellant James Nganga Ndungu was charged with the offence of defilement of a girl between age of 12 and 15 years contrary to section 8(1)(3) of the Sexual Offences Act No. 3 of 2006. Particulars of the offence being that on the 25^th day of August, 2009 at [particulars withheld] in the then Kiambu West District he intentionally and unlawfully caused his penis to penetrate the vagina of “M.W.N.” a girl aged 13 years. There was an alternative charge of indecent act with a child contrary to section 11(1) of the said Act particulars being that he caused his genital organ to touch that of the said child.

A trial took place before the Resident Magistrate, at Kikuyu and in a judgment delivered on 7^th February, 2011 the appellant was convicted of the main offence and a sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment was imposed. A first appeal to the High Court of Kenya at Nairobi (Mary M. Gitumbi, J.) failed in a judgment delivered on 15^th November, 2013 and that provoked this app…