Nyamira teacher who whipped student 107 times to be charged with attempted murder

Jackson Mobisa Marucha, the Riang’ombe SDA Primary School teacher who went viral in March 2023 for spanking a Grade 4 pupil 107 times on the buttocks, will be charged with attempted murder.

Investigators had recommended the suspect be charged with assault, but upon further review, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) preferred attempted murder charges.

The case will be heard on July 29 at the Keroka Law Courts in Nyamira County.

During the incident, Marucha allegedly whipped the student after he reported that his school uniform had been stolen from a clothesline.

The suspect attempted to cover up the heinous act by keeping the boy locked in a bedroom and denying him medical attention after realizing how severe his injuries were.

The boy was so injured that a piece of flesh was missing from his buttocks after the incident and he was unable to even sit up afterwards.

The unpleasant incident of corporal punishment only came to light after the boy’s classmates informed the boy’s uncle, who had come to visit him at school, about his situation.

The school administration had reportedly banned the boy’s uncle from seeing him before the revelation by the boy’s classmates.

Following the incident, Kenyans on Twitter called for the teacher’s immediate arrest after the story went viral on social media.

A multi-agency team comprising DCI detectives, police from a nearby district and Ministry of Education officials subsequently detained the school principal, Isabella Kumenda, and four of her subordinates for questioning.

Kumenda claimed to have been out of school when the incident occurred, but questions were raised as to why it took him so long to report the matter.

The five teachers were detained at the Manga police station, while Marucha went into hiding and was arrested three days later.