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Uganda v Kayita Marko and Others (Criminal Session Case No. 480 of 2021)

High Court · [2022] UGHC 262 · 2022 Two Accused Convicted, Two Acquitted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance murder trial before the High Court
Decision
Kayita Marko and Zaake Emmanuel convicted of murder and sentenced to 31 years and 9 months imprisonment each after credit for remand period. Waswa Ibrahim and Ssemengo Edward acquitted and discharged.

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Holding

The court convicted Kayita Marko and Zaake Emmanuel of murder under section 188 of the Penal Code Act, finding they were the last persons seen with the deceased and that circumstantial evidence established their participation with malice aforethought. Waswa Ibrahim and Ssemengo Edward were acquitted, as their mere presence near the scene while armed was insufficient to establish culpability beyond reasonable doubt.

Outcome

Kayita Marko and Zaake Emmanuel convicted of murder and sentenced to 31 years and 9 months imprisonment each after credit for remand period. Waswa Ibrahim and Ssemengo Edward acquitted and discharged.

Facts

On 21 April 2019, Sunday Giita Yaakem, a resident of Kiwawa LC1 in Kassanda district, discovered that his sheep had gone missing. On the morning of 21 April, while at home with his wife Nansamba Rose, two visitors came seeking payment of debts. Shortly thereafter, Kayita Marko (the deceased's brother) arrived with his son Zaake Emmanuel, claiming to have seen a slaughtered sheep in the bush and offering to take Giita to investigate. Giita left with Kayita and Zaake between 8 and 8.30 a.m. and never returned. Later that morning, witnesses sighted Kayita holding a panga about 150–200 metres from Giita's home, and other accused persons Waswa Ibrahim and Ssemengo Edward were seen armed with a panga and spear in the same vicinity. On 22 April 2019, the body of Sunday Giita was discovered in a bush approximately 400 metres from his home with deep cut wounds on the neck, and sheep bones were recovered ten metres from the body. Medical examination revealed the cause of death as excessive bleeding leading to organic failure. There had been an ongoing land dispute between Kayita and Giita, with Kayita having made prior threats against the deceased over the division of their father's land.

Issues

  1. Whether the death of Sunday Giita Yaakem was unlawfully caused.
  2. Whether the death was intentionally caused with malice aforethought.
  3. Whether the accused persons Kayita Marko, Zaake Emmanuel, Waswa Ibrahim, and Ssemengo Edward participated in the murder.

Orders

  • Kayita Marko convicted of murder contrary to section 188 of the Penal Code Act.
  • Zaake Emmanuel convicted of murder contrary to section 188 of the Penal Code Act.
  • Waswa Ibrahim acquitted of murder and released from custody.
  • Ssemengo Edward acquitted of murder and released from custody.
  • Kayita Marko sentenced to 35 years imprisonment, reduced to 31 years and nine months after credit for three years and three months on remand.
  • Zaake Emmanuel sentenced to 35 years imprisonment, reduced to 31 years and nine months after credit for three years and three months on remand.
  • Right of appeal explained to convicted accused persons.

Rules and key headnotes

Evidence — Identification — Single Identifying Witness — Standard of Proof
Testimony of a single identifying witness is admissible where the witness is credible and conditions favoured correct identification. The court must examine such testimony with the greatest care and, where possible, look for corroborating or other supportive evidence. If after warning itself and scrutinising the evidence the court finds no corroboration, it can still convict if it is sure there is no mistake in the identification.
Evidence — Circumstantial Evidence — Standard for Conviction
In a case based entirely on circumstantial evidence, guilt is inferred from a number of circumstances which, taken as a whole, eliminate the hypothesis of innocence. The evidence must lead to the inference that there is no other explanation other than that it is the accused who committed the offence. The culpable facts must be incompatible with the innocence of the accused and incapable of explanation upon any other reasonable hypothesis than that of guilt.
Criminal Law — Murder — Participation — Circumstantial Evidence Establishing Guilt
Where an accused person was the last person seen with the deceased before death, coupled with the discovery of physical evidence linking the accused to the crime scene (such as remains of the item used to lure the victim), and evidence of a pre-existing motive (land dispute and prior threats), these pieces of circumstantial evidence taken together lead to the inference that the accused participated in the murder.
Criminal Law — Murder — Participation — Insufficiency of Evidence Based on Presence Alone
Where the only evidence against an accused is their presence in the vicinity of a crime scene while armed, such evidence standing alone is insufficient to establish culpability for murder beyond reasonable doubt in the absence of other cogent evidence linking them to the commission of the offence.

Legislation cited (2)

Cases cited (4)

  • Katuramu John v Uganda (Criminal Appeal No. 2 of 1998)
  • Uganda v Ogwal Francis and Two Others (Criminal Case No. 217 of 2019)
  • Mureeba v Uganda (Criminal Appeal No. 13 of 2003)
  • R v Kipkering Arap Koske and Another (1949) 16 EACA 135

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Uganda v Kayita Marko and Others (Criminal Session Case No. 480 of 2021) [2022] UGHC 262 (16 June 2022)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.