The High Court has sentenced former Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) Major Peter Mugure to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of murdering his wife and their two children in a case that shocked the country in October 2019.
Before sentence was passed, Mugure declined to plead for leniency and instead maintained that he disagreed with the court’s decision. Whileaddressing the court, he insisted he would only challenge his convictions on appeal and not the sentence.
“I respect that decision of the court, for it presently legally binds me… Nevertheless, with tremendous respect to the court, in principle I am unable to agree with the verdict,” Mugure told the judge.
Justice Muya noted that Mugure had shown no remorse and proceeded to sentence him to life imprisonment, describing the killings as “barbaric” and deserving of the maximum custodial sentence.
“I find that the acts committed were barbaric. Bearing in mind that the accused has been in custody, I sentence him to life imprisonment,” the judge ruled.
Although Mugure had spent several years in remand custody awaiting the conclusion of his trial, the court held that the seriousness of the offence outweighed any mitigating factors.
Mugure, who served as a Major in the Kenya Defence Forces before the incident, was convicted of murdering his wife, Joyce Syombua, and their two children before burying their bodies in a shallow grave at Thigithu Cemetery near the Nanyuki Airbase.
