Supreme Court upholds 33-year prison sentence for two men over Westgate shopping centre attack

The Supreme Court has upheld a 33-year prison sentence imposed on two men responsible for the 2013 terror attack on the Westgate Mall that left 67 people dead and more than 200 seriously injured.

In her ruling on Friday, Justice Grace Nzioka agreed with former Chief Justice of Milimani State Francis Andayi (now a High Court judge) that the convicts deserved severe punishment for a heinous crime that left unforgettable memories and indelible marks on the victim’s life.

Justice Nzioka ruled that the then judge had correctly applied the law in sentencing.

During the virtual sentencing, Judge Nzioka quickly added: “The state did not file a cross-appeal seeking an increase in the sentence imposed. I would have increased it because of the heartbreaking, bloody images at the scene and in the morgue that the court saw.”

She refused to reduce the 18- and 15-year prison sentences handed down by the then judge to Mohammed Ahmed Abdi and Hussein Mustafa.