Former Migori Governor Zachary Okoth Obado will return to the High Court on September 16, 2026, for sentencing after his conviction over the 2018 murder of university student Sharon Otieno.
Lady Justice Cecilia Githua set the sentencing date on Tuesday after the court received a victim impact report detailing how Sharon’s death affected her family.
Court Convicts Obado and Two Others
The court convicted Obado, his former personal assistant and a former Migori County clerk on July 23.
Justice Githua ruled that prosecutors had proved the murder case beyond reasonable doubt after presenting evidence from 42 witnesses.
The prosecution relied largely on circumstantial evidence to establish that the three men worked together in the events that led to Sharon’s death.
Family Seeks Compensation
Sharon’s family has also asked for compensation over the financial burden that followed her death and the lengthy court case.
The family says it spent about Ksh4.7 million during the nearly eight-year legal battle and sold land and a cow to meet some of the expenses.
The court will consider the victim impact report alongside submissions from the prosecution and defence before determining the appropriate sentence.
Sharon’s Murder
Sharon disappeared in September 2018 before investigators found her body in a thicket in Uriri Constituency.
A postmortem examination conducted by Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor established that she died from strangulation and severe bleeding caused by multiple stab wounds.
Obado and his two co-convicts remain in custody as they await the September 16 sentencing hearing.
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