Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Gilbert Masengeli can breathe a sigh of relief after the High Court set aside his conviction and sentence over the contempt of court orders.
Masengeli, who the court gave the leeway to punch his punishment at the time of his sentencing after he was found in contempt for failing to appear in court to explain the whereabouts of three activists said to have been abducted by the police, appeared in court on Friday, September 20, 2024, to apologise in an attempt to have his conviction and sentence quashed.
He tabled his alabi before the court indicating that he did not deliberately ignore orders since he was busy attending to national security matters along the Coast, North Eastern and Eastern regions at the time he was convicted and subsequently sentenced.
Masengeli apologised to the court and sought forgiveness over the conviction.
“I want to apologise to the court and the judiciary for the events leading to my conviction and sentencing. It has been my duty to respect and enforce court orders,” Masengeli said.
In his ruling, Justice Lawrence Mugambi said that Masengeli was remorseful for the contempt of court conviction.
The judge also said that Masengeli’s answers about to his alabi during the cross-examination appeared genuine.
“He was calm before the court and pleaded for forgiveness and mercy from the court. The supremacy of the law has been vindicated and up to this moment, Masengeli has successfully punched the contempt of court conviction. As a result, the conviction and sentence are hereby set aside,” the judge ruled.
Justice Mugambi subsequently recused himself from the case and referred the matter to the Chief Justice to constitute a bench to hear the case following a further application made by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
“I am happy to note from the LSK that three Kenyans, the subject to this petition, have been found. Having said so, and considering everything else, I am making my decision to recuse myself from the further proceedings of this case for personal reasons. I will thus be directing that this file be placed before the presiding judge for allocation to another judge,” he said.
Masengeli was convicted and consequently jailed for six months on September 13, 2024, after the Court found him guilty of contempt of court.
He had been summoned seven times to appear in court to explain the whereabouts of three people who went missing last month.
The three activists Bob Njagi and two brothers Jamil Langton and Aslam Longton were found on Friday morning.
