Former Migori Governor Zacharia Okoth Obado has urged the High Court to acquit him in the murder case of university student Sharon Beryl Otieno, insisting that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Through Senior Counsel Kioko Kilikumi, Obado told the court that there is no direct evidence linking him to Sharon’s death and that the case against him is built purely on suspicion arising from their intimate relationship.
“I did not kill Sharon,” his defence team submitted, arguing that suspicion, however strong, cannot replace proof.
Sharon was killed on the night of September 3 and 4, 2018, and her body was later discovered near River Owade in Homa Bay County. A postmortem examination established that she died from severe haemorrhage caused by penetrating force trauma, with additional evidence of manual strangulation. She was approximately 28 weeks pregnant at the time of her death.
Obado is charged alongside his former personal assistant Michael Juma Oyamo and former Migori County clerk Caspal Ojwang Obiero. The three are facing a murder charge over Sharon’s killing.
In January 2025, the High Court acquitted them of a second count relating to the death of the unborn child but ruled that they had a case to answer regarding Sharon’s murder, placing them on their defence. All three have denied the charge.
While admitting that he had an intimate relationship with Sharon, Obado acknowledged DNA results indicating a 99.9 per cent probability that he was the father of the unborn child. However, he maintained that the relationship was not a motive for murder, telling the court that he had been financially supporting Sharon, including paying for her upkeep and medical expenses.
The defence argued that the two had reached an amicable understanding and that Sharon had abandoned any alleged plans to expose their relationship to the media, effectively dismissing claims that he had a reason to silence her.
Obado’s lawyers further criticised investigators, accusing them of focusing solely on him due to the pregnancy instead of pursuing other possible leads. They pointed to alleged threatening messages Sharon reportedly received from an unidentified woman, claiming that this line of inquiry was not exhaustively investigated.
“The prosecution has merely painted the 1st accused with the colours of suspicion,” the defence submitted, maintaining that the evidence on record does not meet the legal threshold required for a conviction.
The court is now expected to consider the final submissions before delivering its judgment in the high-profile case that has gripped the nation for years.
