The suspect had denied the cgarge but while awaiting judgement, confessed to the crime.
The Court of Appeal has upheld an 18 year jail sentence handed to a man after being convicted of murder.
On the 16th of May 2017, Mpigi sitting High Court Judge, Masalu Musene convicted Ntegereza Kakondo Steven of murder basing on his own plea of guilty.
It was alleged that on the 22nd day of Febuary 2015 at Kayunga-Maddu village,Maddu sub-county in Gomba District, with malice aforethought unlawfully murdered Mbalule Donizio.
He had denied the said offence and the case went to a full trial in which court assessors recommended that he be found guilty, but before the trial judge could sentence him, he turned around and pleaded guilty to murder.He was subsequently convicted on his own plea of guilt and sentenced to l8 years'imprisonment.
However, he was dissatisfied with both the plea taking and the sentence and lodged this appeal on grounds that, the learned trial Judge erred in law and fact when he convicted him on his plea of guilty without explaining to him the essential ingredients of the offence of murder thereby occasioning him a miscarriage of justice and that the 18 year jail sentence was harsh and manifestly excessive.
Three justices of the Court of Appeal led by justice Catherine Bamugemereire dismissed his Appeal stating that the trial judge never erred in law and that the 18 year jail sentence was not harsh or manifestly excessive.
The Justices observed that that the convict had been explained to what the charge of murder entailed when he first took plea and that he can not claim to have been prejudiced simply because the facts were not repeated to him.End.