Gwaru Rai v Republic

REPUBLIC OF KENYA IN THE HIGH COURT OF KENYA AT MOMBASA CRIMINAL REVISION NO. 48 OF 2014 (From the original conviction and sentence in Criminal Case No. 1045 of 2014 in the Senior Principal Magistrate's Court at Kwale – Hon. Njagi RM) GWARU RAI …...........................................................…….....…..APPLICANT VERSUS REPUBLIC ……….……....................................................…RESPONDENT RULING This application for review was brought by way of a letter from Aminga & Company Advocates dated the 30th day of October, 2014. The grounds are that the applicant pleaded guilty to a charge of cutting down trees without permit contrary to section 52(1) as read with section 2 of the Forests Act No. 7 of 2005. The applicant was ordered to pay a fine of Ksh. 150,000/= in default one (1) year imprisonment. The applicant its contended that he was a first offender and the Sentence was harsh and excessive. Section 52(2) of the Forests Act is the punitive section and it provides, “Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub section (1) of this section commits an offence and is liable on Conviction to a fine of not less than fifty thousand shillings (50,000/=) to imprisonment for a term of not less than six (6) months or to both fine and imprisonment”. In the present case the Accused was found with three poles of indigenous Mkongolo tree at Mrima Forest. He was Sentenced to a fine of Ksh. 150,000/= in default one (1) year imprisonment. He was treated as a first offender. The fine of Ksh. 150,000/= and in default one year imprisonment is rather harsh considering the circumstances of this case where the Accused was found with three poles

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