Acting Inspector General Gilbert Masengeli was on Friday sentenced to six months in prison after he was found guilty of contempt of court.
In his ruling, Justice Lawrence Mugambi ordered Masengeli to surrender himself to the Commissioner General of Prisons to serve his sentence within the next seven days.
The judge further ordered that in the event Masengeli fails to surrender himself, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki must take steps to ensure Masengeli is committed to prison to serve his sentence.
“Mr Gilbert Masengeli is sentenced to six months imprisonment, he is ordered to submit himself to the Commissioner of Kenya Prisons to ensure he is committed to a prison facility to commence serving sentence,” ruled Justice Mugambi.
The Milimani Law Courts building which hosts the High Court
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Office of the Registrar High Court
“The court nevertheless finds it desirable to impose this sentence as a coercive order as opposed to a punitive order. Mr Masengeli may avoid serving this sentence and in that regard suspend this sentencing for seven days only.”
Masengeli was on Tuesday, September 3, found guilty of contempt of court after snubbing six consecutive summons.
He had been summoned to appear before the judge to explain the whereabouts of two brothers, Jamil Longton and Aslam Longton, and activist Bob Njagi who were abducted in Kitengela last month.
Justice Mugambi in his previous ruling, termed Masengeli’s conduct unacceptable and one that bordered on outright intimidation.
“The willful disobedience of court orders is a direct affront to the rule of law. Those who defy court orders must be held accountable, and failure to appear in court amounts to direct contempt,” the judge commented.
Today’s ruling followed an application filed by the accused who sought the court’s decision to postpone his sentencing for a later date.
Masengeli wanted the court to suspend his sentencing on grounds that he was focusing on critical matters of national security.
He alleged that the ongoing security operations were paramount and required his immediate attention, thus justifying his non-attendance.
Acting Inspector General Gilbert Masengeli inspecting a guard of honour
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NPS
