Mavoko Court has granted lawyer Angela Mulwa and Nelson Masiga a free bond or three million after she was charged with conspiracy to commit a felony, stealing, handling stolen property and malicious damage to property.
The defence had applied for reasonable bail, an application that was not opposed by the prosecution. However, the State asked the court to consider the nature and seriousness of the charges, the rights of both the accused and the complainant, and ensure that any bond terms imposed were commensurate with the offences facing the accused persons.
In determining the bail terms, the court considered submissions from both the defence and the prosecution, as well as a pre-bail report filed in the matter. The court relied on Section 123 of the Criminal Procedure Code and Article 50 of the Constitution, which provide for the right to bail and bond. The court noted that bail terms should not be excessive or unreasonable and should only be sufficient to ensure that an accused person attends court throughout the trial.
The magistrate cited the 2017 decision in Andrew Young Otieno v Republic, where the court held that the primary purpose of bail is to secure an accused person’s attendance in court and that bond terms should not effectively undermine the constitutional right to bail pending trial.
The court said it had to consider several factors, including the seriousness of the offences, the strength of the prosecution case, the likelihood of an accused person failing to attend court and other circumstances relevant to the interests of justice. The magistrate further observed that while bail terms should not be excessive, they should also not be so relaxed as to create an incentive for an accused person to abscond.
After considering the circumstances of the case and the individual accused persons, the court granted each of the two accused persons a KSh3 million bond with one surety of a similar amount.
The court provided an alternative option of a KSh2 million cashbail with a personal recognizance of KSh1 million. The court also granted the accused persons a right of appeal against the bond terms within 14 days.
