A court awarded a shop attendant from Kayole Ksh4.5 million as compensation and an additional Ksh500,000 as punitive damages for wrongful arrest and prosecution.
Big payday for man wrongfully charged by DPP
The Judiciary Kenya
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High Court judge James Makau ruled on Friday that police and officers from the DPP’s office violated Anthony Murimi Waigwe’s rights after preferring a robbery with violence charge against him without evidence in 2015.
“I find that it is not properly right in a civilized society like ours to close our eyes, ears and mouths when police officers arrest and charge innocent Kenyan youth and have them taken through an unnecessary criminal trial like in the instance case,” Justice Makau stated.
Justice James Makau
Pulse Live Kenya
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“In my view, any good prosecution must be purposeful and should not be used to stage-manage cases… in a democratic society like ours no one should be charged without authorities conducting proper investigations,” he added.
Wrong charge
Waigwe was arrested while heading to his workplace on July 22, 2015, following an encounter with police officers in Nairobi’s Kayole area.
He told the court that he was immediately locked up at Kayole Police Station without being informed reasons for the arrest.
Waigwe was detained at the police station for over a week — from July 22 to July 31, 2015, when he was charged with robbery with violence alongside another man.
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The Kenyan Judiciary
Pulse Live Kenya
The court ruled that the charge was orchestrated by malice taking into account that he was not found in possession of any stolen goods and was charged immediately after the identification parade.
Justice Makau said the facts in the case showed no reasonable and honest person could have accepted the prosecution’s robbery with violence charge against Waigwe was likely to succeed.
