NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 23 – The High Court has revoked the bond terms of former Migori Governor Okoth Obado, his former personal assistant Michael Oyamo and former Migori County Clerk Caspal Obiero after convicting them of the 2018 murder of university student Sharon Otieno, ordering that they remain in custody pending sentencing.Justice Cecilia Githua directed the Probation Department to prepare pre-sentence reports and victim impact statements within 21 days before the court determines the appropriate sentence.The orders followed the conviction of the three men after the court found that the prosecution had proved beyond reasonable doubt that they acted with a common intention in the murder.“It is therefore my finding that the prosecution has proved its case against the first, the second and the third accused persons beyond reasonable doubt,” Justice Githua ruled.“I consequently find each accused person guilty of the offence of murder contrary to Section 203 of the Penal Code as charged in Count One. Each accused is accordingly convicted under Section 322 of the Criminal Procedure Code.”In a detailed judgment, Justice Githua held that the prosecution’s circumstantial evidence established that the three accused acted in concert as part of a coordinated criminal enterprise that culminated in Sharon’s death.“Having carefully appraised the evidence on record in its entirety, it is clear to me that the evidence adduced by the prosecution demonstrated and left no doubt that the accused persons acted in concert, jointly with others not before the court, pursuant to a common design, each performing a distinct role in furtherance of a criminal enterprise that resulted in the death of the late Sharon,” she said.The judge found that Obado conceived, financed and instigated the plot, while Oyamo facilitated its execution and Obiero provided logistical support and helped conceal the crime.“To summarize, the first accused supplied motive, instigation and funds to finance the criminal enterprise. The second accused facilitated execution, while the third accused ensured logistical support and concealment to avoid detection of the offence,” Justice Githua said.She ruled that the evidence demonstrated planning, coordination and malice aforethought, satisfying the legal ingredients of murder.The court also rejected Obado’s defence that he could not be held criminally liable because he was in Nairobi when Sharon was abducted and killed in Homa Bay County.Justice Githua held that physical absence from the crime scene did not absolve him under the doctrine of common intention.“The fact that the first accused was not physically present where the offence was committed does not shield him from criminal culpability, since under the doctrine of common intention, criminal liability does not depend on who physically commits the act, but whether the accused acted in concert with others to execute an unlawful purpose,” she ruled.The judge further held that the prosecution had established an unbroken chain of circumstantial evidence linking the three men to the murder.“I am satisfied that the circumstances presented in this case, taken cumulatively, form a chain so complete that there is no escape from the conclusion that the accused persons, jointly with others not before the court, committed the offence charged,” she said.Earlier in the judgment, Justice Githua found that Obado had pressured Sharon to terminate her pregnancy, rejecting his claim that he had accepted it. The court held that the pregnancy supplied the motive that triggered the chain of events leading to Sharon’s murder.Sharon Otieno, who was about seven months pregnant at the time of her death in September 2018, was abducted and murdered in a case that became one of Kenya’s longest-running and most closely watched murder trials.The matter will be mentioned on August 18, when the court is expected to receive the probation and victim impact reports ahead of sentencing. Obado, Oyamo and Obiero will remain in custody until then.