Kenya court convicts Venezuela diplomat of murder charge 11 years later News
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Kenya court convicts Venezuela diplomat of murder charge 11 years later

A Kenyan court Thursday convicted Venezuelan diplomat Dwight Sagaray on murder charges for a killing that occurred 11 years ago. The High Court of Kenya in Nairobi found Sagaray guilty of the July 2012 murder of Ambassador Olga Fonseca, whose body was found in her Nairobi, Kenya residence.

Following the 2012 murder, the Venezuelan government stripped Sagaray of his diplomatic immunity. As a result, Sagaray faced prosecution. Despite Sagaray’s status as a foreign national and a flight risk, the court granted his release on bail but imposed stringent conditions to ensure his attendance at trial.

During trial, the court found that Fonseca’s arrival in Kenya angered Sagaray because Fonseca was to oversee the embassy, which had been Sagaray’s role up until she arrived. A power struggle between the two ensued. Justice Rosslyn Korir stated that Sagaray’s motive was clear as per compelling evidence of his earlier attempts to further impede Fonseca’s takeover of the embassy. The court found that the prosecution successfully established the killing act, together with malice aforethought and intent, which resulted in the guilty verdict.

Three Kenyan nationals were convicted alongside Sagaray for aiding and abetting the crime. According to the court, sentencing in the case will occur some time in February.