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A Kenyan hotel worker accused of killing British tourist and abduction of his wife has been sentenced to death.
Lamu Senior Principal Magistrate Johnstone Munguti sentenced Ali Babito Kololo after convicting him of being behind the murder and kidnapping of David Tebutt and Judith Tebbut in 2011.
Judith was held hostage for six months in central Somalia after she was kidnapped by suspected Somalia pirates in Lamu. She however managed to survive the kidnapping ordeal and testified as the main witness in the case.
"As per the evidence collected and witness accounts in this case, the court is satisfied with the evidence and hereby sentence you to death as prescribed by the law," Munguti ruled in the court papers received on Tuesday.
He also sentenced him another seven years in jail for the crime of abduction of Judith at Kiwayu tourist resort in the coastal town of Lamu.
The killing and abduction of the two and elderly French national in Lamu affected the tourism industry after U.S.and European Union issued travel advisories prompting Kenya to send troops to Somalia to counter Somalia militants.
Kololo worked at the hotel where the couple was staying between July and October 2010. Senior officials including government pathologist and forensic experts who testified gave evidence that linked to the crime.
According statement recorded from 20 witnesses placed the accused at the scene of crime where he was positively identified on the night of the attack based on the clothes he wore shortly after the incident.
He however pleaded not guilty at his trial held and told the court he was victim of circumstance and was also abducted by the suspected Somalia pirates
Since 2005, the country has suffered sporadic attacks by suspected Al-Shabaab terror militants who claimed responsible for killing and kidnapping foreigners.
The government has responded robustly with heavy deployment of forces in Lamu, other islets, and international border seeking to prevent a fresh assault on the tourism sector.
