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Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.
Mombasa - The High Court has ordered the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) to reduce the number of murder counts against controversial preacher Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and 29 others.
Lady Justice Mugure Thande ruled that the number of murder charges against the accused persons be reduced from the current 191 to 12.
Justice Mugure, who delivered her ruling virtually, noted that reducing the number of charges would speed up justice for all parties and save judicial time.
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"This will obviously take a long time and will prejudice the rights of the accused persons to fair trial," she said.
Thande gave the DPP 21 days to amend the information containing the murder counts before filing fresh charges against them.
"It is evident that there is consensus in the two cases that counts should not be many. I therefore direct the ODPP to, within 21 days, amend the charge sheet to contain not more than 12 counts," she ruled.
The court further determined that Mackenzie and 29 others were properly charged in the Shakahola massacre in Kilifi County.
Judge Thande ruled that the charge facing Mackenzie and his co-accused was properly drafted, and the suspects were charged in accordance with the law.
She explained that the charges as drawn will not occasion any prejudice to Mackenzie and his co-accused persons.
The ruling followed a preliminary objection filed by defence counsel James Mouko, who stated that the counts were amorphous to the extent that they did not contain specific dates, places and the names of some of the victims.
Earlier, a Mombasa court denied bail to the controversial preacher after he pleaded not guilty to various charges.
In his ruling, Chief Magistrate Alex Ithuku agreed with the prosecution that Mackenzie and his co-accused lack a permanent place of abode.
Therefore, having them attend court as required would be difficult because their homes are either unknown or temporary.
Ithuku added that the prosecution had given compelling reasons justifying why the accused did not qualify for bail.
Proofreading by Asher Omondi, current affairs journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
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Paul Mackenzie in court.
Paul Mackenzie: Mombasa Court Directs State to Reduce Murder Counts
Paul Mackenzie: Mombasa Court Directs State to Reduce Murder Counts