This archive report was first published on 20 September 2019.
Published on September 20, 2019, a man was yesterday charged at a Kakamega law court with the killing of a neighbour's three-year-old daughter during the extraction of rocks using explosives.
Ben Mutuka was however not charged with murder but manslaughter after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) intervened saying the girl's death was not intentional.
According to court documents, Mutuka and three others were drilling and blasting rocks at Mutuka's compound on the fateful Sunday when the girl, Valarie Muruka, was hit by a rock 20 metres away coming from the explosion site.
Muruka's mother, Jackline Bukhala, later found her daughter bleeding from the head after the explosion and she succumbed to the injuries.
Forced to escape from the scene to avoid confrontation by the public, the accused was arrested earlier this week after being on the run since March.
When he appeared before Kakamega Senior Principal Magistrate Hazel Wandere, Mutuka denied the charges and was granted Sh100,000 bond with a surety of similar amount without an alternative of cash bail.
The matter shall be heard on November 4.
