The woman from Siaya County who was jailed for one day after being found guilty of killing her husband has spoken after her release.
The High Court in Siaya sentenced Truphena Ndonga Aswani to one day in jail on March 9, after she confessed to killing her husband. She was released the next day.
The 49-year-old woman has attributed the court's decision to God’s miracle stating that she had never imagined such a verdict could be made.
“I don’t know what to say. God has literally walked me out of a lion’s jaws,” Aswani said.
Aswani, who is still shocked at how the case turned out, says that she went to court expecting to be handed life imprisonment for manslaughter.
Aswani told The Standard that when news of her killing her husband on December 15 broke, most of her friends and families abandoned her.
She also added that despite her pastor being persistent in teaching her about forgiveness, it reached a point when he stopped picking her calls.
“A handful of relatives picked my calls. One was categorical that I should never set foot in her home. Some called to find out why it was taking so long for me to be imprisoned, while others threatened me,” Aswani narrated.
She knew she would never be free again.
“I knew I didn’t belong to this world, that I would soon be met with prison bedbugs. That the court would sentence me to life, until Justice Roselyne Aburili’s judgment happened,” she added.
The family of her late husband James Oyengo Obochi felt that she had broken the bond often created by marriage and none of them visited her when she was in the cells awaiting judgment.
“I know his death hurt them. I am in the process of finding a way of personally apologising to his kin and the community where I was an elder. It is hard, but I hope to do it soon so that I bring closure to the matter,” Aswani narrated.
She also added that she had a great lawyer who in his own way brought her close to God.
“My lawyer was an interesting man. He led me to Christ and even prompted me to confess all my sins. I think that had a great bearing on my release. I feel like preaching the Good News of Christ going forward,” she says.
Aswani who is currently staying with her step-brother’s home in Kakamega has two children who are with her sister in Siaya. Even though she is planning to go back, she fears the tension is still very high.
“I want to return to Siaya to be with the two, but it looks like this will never be possible. All I need is land and a small business outside Siaya so that the new life the court has accorded me can be meaningful,” she says.
Judge Roselyne Aburili of the High Court in Siaya ruled that the accused (Aswani) had suffered at the hands of her husband who was not only violent but occasionally threatened to kill her.
"The ruling will enable others who have suffered a similar fate to have their voices heard," she declared.
