The High Court has found that Michael Oyamo, the former personal assistant to ex-Migori Governor Okoth Obado, played a central role in the chain of events that led to the abduction and murder of Sharon Otieno.
In its judgment, Justice Cecilia Githua dismissed Oyamo’s defence as untruthful, noting that he had admitted serving as Obado’s personal assistant and bodyguard for about a decade. The court found it unbelievable that he claimed to have had little knowledge of Sharon Otieno or the circumstances surrounding the case.
The judge held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Oyamo organised the meeting at Graca Hotel where Sharon, a key prosecution witness (PW9), and others gathered on the day of her disappearance. Although Oyamo maintained that he had been sent by Obado to deliver money to Sharon, the court rejected that explanation.
Instead, the court found that the meeting was a planned operation intended to hand Sharon over to the men who later abducted, sexually assaulted and killed her.
Justice Githua ruled that it made no difference whether Oyamo boarded the vehicle at the hotel or at another location, saying the evidence firmly placed him at the centre of the events immediately preceding Sharon’s abduction.
The court accepted the testimony of PW9, who told the trial that unidentified men who met Oyamo near the hotel abducted Sharon before later killing her.
In its analysis, the court further found that the conversations between the abductors, Sharon and PW9 concerning Sharon’s relationship with Obado and the governor’s alleged involvement demonstrated a clear connection between the crime and the former governor. The judge also held that although Obado was not physically present at the Graca Hotel meeting, he was aware of what was taking place because, by Oyamo’s own admission, he had sent him to meet Sharon.
The court further found that Oyamo deliberately concealed his identity by fraudulently acquiring an Airtel SIM card using another person’s details despite already owning a Safaricom line. According to the judgment, the Airtel line was obtained only days before Sharon’s murder and was used exclusively to communicate with her, leading the court to conclude that it was acquired to facilitate the commission of the offence while avoiding detection by investigators.
