The court has ordered the County government of Kitui and former Governor Charity Ngilu to compensate businessman David Kariuki 25 million.
According to the court, the evidence presented compelled that Ngilu ordered her employees to burn Kariuki’s lorry that was ferrying 400 bags of charcoal on February 7, 2018.
Kariuki testified that the employees set ablaze his lorry even after he had adhered to the regulations, including paying Ksh 12,000 to transport the charcoal.
“I lost my truck, my cargo, and more importantly, my livelihood. The people who carried out this act were not authorized to do so”, Kariuki said.
However, Kitui County and Ngilu responded that they did not have a hand in the construction of the vehicle nor did they witness anyone setting the lorry ablaze.
In his judgment, Chief Magistrate David Mburu said that even if the defendants had been ordered to stop the vehicle, it was unlawful to burn the track.
He ruled that Waweru be compensated a total amount of 25 Million for the vehicle damages, lost income and profits, charcoal consignment, and the plaintiff’s mental distress.
“It is clear from the testimonies presented that the actions of the defendants led directly to the loss of the plaintiff’s vehicle and its consignment,” Mburu said in his judgment.
