This archive report was first published on 5 December 2019.
On December 5, 2019, the High Court quashed criminal charges against Mombasa Principal Magistrate Edgar Kagoni over loss of a heroin exhibit worth Sh30 million in a case he presided over.
Malindi Resident Judge Reuben Nyakundi ordered the respondents in the petition to pay the magistrate Sh2 million as damages for infringing his rights.
The respondents in the case were the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), and the Attorney-General.
The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and the Kenya Judges and Magistrates Association (KJMA) had been listed as interested parties in the case.
Justice Nyakundi noted that the magistrate performed his duty in the case and that his right to liberty during his arrest was violated.
The court also found that the DPP's prosecution of the magistrate was unconstitutional and an attempt at undermining judicial independence and the immunity of judicial officers.
"The respondent had the right to appeal on findings or even apply for judicial review. I find no prima facie evidence to guarantee criminal prosecution against the magistrate in view to the criminal proceedings case," he ruled.
However, Justice Nyakundi dismissed three other petitions related to the same matter, filed by court assistant Onesmus Momanyi, court executive assistant Abdallah Awadh, and court staff Lawrence Thoya.
