JUDGMENT
1.Joseph Lesinik Sekel, the appellant, was convicted by the Chief Magistrates’ Court at Nanyuki of defilement contrary to section 8(1) (2) of the Sexual Offences Act and sentenced to serve life imprisonment.
2.Dissatisfied with both the conviction and sentence, the appellant preferred an appeal to the High Court raising five (5) grounds of appeal in his amended petition of appeal. The appellant faulted the trial magistrate for convicting him when the offence had not been proved beyond reasonable doubt, adding that the magistrate relied on contradictory and inconsistent evidence adduced by the respondent; that his defence was disregarded without proper reason; that the matter had been poorly investigated; and finally, that the complainant’s mother instituted the case against him for the reason that the appellant had failed to pay her the money she had demanded for.
3.The first appellate court (Riechi, J.) found that the appellant was properly convicted and dismissed the appeal an…