High Court in Kabale has condemned two adults to Ndorwa Government Prison for the murder of a 70-year-old woman in Kisoro district.
Fausta Mukankusi, aged 41, and Innocent Niyonzima, aged 26, both from Kisoro Municipality, were convicted for the murder of Florence Bashimiki, a resident of Nyaruyaga village in Kisoro Municipality.
The murder stemmed from a family land dispute, with Mukankusi, the daughter of the victim, orchestrating the crime.
While passing the judgment Friday afternoon, Justice Samuel Emokor, noted that the offenders violated Sections 188 and 189 of the Penal Code.
The prosecution was led by Isaac Onyango, the Kabale State Attorney, while the defense was represented by Felix Bakanyebonera from M/S Bakanyebonera & Co. Advocates. The defense requested a lighter sentence for Mukankusi, citing her responsibility for six children.
However, Justice Emokor emphasized that Mukankusi accurately planned her mother’s murder, and conspired with Niyonzima to execute the crime.
He added that without the efforts of skilled investigators and prosecutors, Mukankusi might have escaped justice, as she had carried out the crime almost perfectly.
Justice Emokor condemned Mukankusi for not considering the consequences of her actions.
He also condemned Niyonzima for participating in a murder over a grudge that did not concern him.
Subsequently, Justice Emokor sentenced both convicts to 30 years in prison, deducting the time they had already spent in remand during the trial.
Additionally, a third convict in the case, Brian Hakizimana, 22, had pleaded guilty early in the trial and received a 30-year prison sentence as well.
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