Revelations that the eyes of a woman killed on this year’s Valentine’s Day were gouged out prompted a magistrate in Eldoret to reject manslaughter charges against a suspect linked to the killing.
Senior resident magistrate Beatrice Toroitich directed the prosecution to carry out a proper assessment of the facts in a case in which Jonah Kiplimo was charged with manslaughter in connection with the death of his girlfriend, Rose Akinyi Oluoch.
The charge sheet stated he killed Oluoch on the night of February 14–15, at Kapyemit location in Turbo subcounty, Uasin Gishu county.
The accused had pleaded guilty to manslaughter. The prosecution, led by Patricia Kirui, was presenting the facts of the case when she said the body of the deceased was found in her rental house at Maili Nne with her eyes gouged out and several other injuries suggesting she had been strangled.
Kirui read details from the investigating officer, but the report did not provide full particulars on how the killing occurred.
She told the court the accused went missing after the killing and after several days, reported at Kobujoi police station in Nandi county, where he allegedly confessed to killing his girlfriend in her house in Eldoret.
Kirui said the accused was arrested and taken back to the scene of crime, where the body was found with multiple injuries and the eyes gouged out. She said the postmortem report did not clarify whether the eyes had been removed or not.
The magistrate said she was surprised by the scanty details provided by the prosecution and questioned how the charge of manslaughter had been arrived at.
“The facts are so scanty, not even indicating where the incident occurred, how it occurred and why. If the eyes were gouged out, then the facts must explain clearly, including who did it. We need to know all the happenings that led to the killing,” Toroitich said.
She wondered how the investigation concluded there was no malice aforethought, considering the multiple injuries, including the gouging out of the eyes.
“To me, this looks like a direct murder case, but the court will not proceed with the manslaughter charge if the facts provided do not add up to explain what happened,” she said.
Kirui said the details on record were based on the accused’s confession, but the magistrate said she was not satisfied with the scanty information provided.
She returned the file to the prosecution and directed that the investigating officer provide proper facts before the matter could proceed.
The family of the deceased, through lawyer Richard Warigi, also protested the handling of the case, saying they had raised similar concerns when the manslaughter charge was preferred.
“My clients have been left wondering why the accused was not charged with murder and how the manslaughter charge came about. We agree with the court that the facts are not clear at all,” Warigi said.
He said the family wanted justice for their daughter, which could not be achieved without proper investigations and appropriate charges.
The magistrate directed that the case be mentioned on June 2, 2026, for further directions.
Family members of the deceased, led by her father Martin Oluoch and mother Alice Ofiti, were in court and later said they were shocked by the handling of the case by investigators.
“My daughter was killed brutally and I buried her mutilated body, with her eyes having been removed. We have never been told what happened, and here is the suspect being charged with manslaughter,” the father said.
He further claimed the body had also been doused in acid.
Ofiti said the family had not been aware that their daughter was in a relationship with the man until reports of his confession emerged.
Before she was killed, the deceased had recorded a video clip of herself wearing Valentine’s colours and dancing, saying she was celebrating her mother, who loved her and always stood by her.
“She loved us as a family and she was a well-behaved girl who was running her own business as she prepared to go abroad for work. I hope justice will prevail, even though I know she is gone forever,” Ofiti said.
