Arusha. What initially appeared as a normal family prayer session at home following a television broadcast turned into an altercation leading to the eventual death of Mr John Kessy.
However, the High Court has ultimately acquitted Mr Isaya Muna, who was charged with the murder, after identifying significant lingering doubts in the prosecution's evidence.
The High Court’s Singida Sub-Registry noted that although it was firmly established that Mr Kessy died from a severe brain injury, the prosecution failed to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that Mr Muna inflicted the fatal attack.
According to evidence presented in court, the incident occurred on November 6, 2025, at Ngamu Village, Mwasanya Ward, Ilongero within Singida Region, shortly after the deceased sprinkled holy water around his property following the just concluded television programme.
The court heard that Mr Muna, who was known to the victim's family, openly mocked the deceased, accusing him of sprinkling “witchcraft water”.
It was alleged that when Mr Kessy confronted him, a heated argument ensued.
Mr Muna, who was allegedly consuming alcohol, attacked him by delivering punches and striking him on the head with a beer bottle, rendering him unconscious. He sadly died two weeks and three days later.
However, the subsequent legal proceedings resulted in Mr Muna’s acquittal after the court determined that the prosecution’s evidence fell significantly short of proving beyond reasonable doubt that he directly caused Mr Kessy's tragic death.
The judgment was delivered on Friday, August 7, 2026, by Judge Ayoub Mwenda, presiding over criminal case number 6927/2026, with a copy subsequently uploaded to the official judiciary website.
How the case unfolded
Mr Muna faced murder charges contrary to sections 196 and 197 of the Penal Code.
The first prosecution witness, the deceased’s son, Mr Jovin Kessy, testified that on the afternoon of November 6, 2025, they were watching the television broadcast, noting that afterwards, his father sprinkled holy water around the family residence.
He alleged that the accused mocked the deceased, accusing him of using superstitious water.
When Mr Kessy confronted him, the accused, who was drinking alcohol, threw a bottle, repeatedly assaulting him on the head until he lost consciousness.
He claimed that electricity was available during the incident, enabling him to clearly identify Mr Muna, whom he had known well beforehand.
Following the assault, Mr Kessy stated that he and his 11-year-old sister carried their injured father inside the house.
It was alleged that the sub-village chairperson arrived and asked Mr Kessy if he required hospitalisation, but he declined.
The following morning, he visited a dispensary, where he later died two weeks and three days afterwards.
The second witness corroborated this evidence, Dr Daniel Tarimo, who informed the court that the post-mortem examination revealed the deceased succumbed to a severe brain injury.
The fifth witness, a police officer who investigated the case, testified that he interrogated the accused, who allegedly confessed to causing Mr Kessy's death. However, the written statement was not formally tendered in court as an exhibit.
The defence
In his defence, Mr Muna relied upon an alibi, claiming that between November 4 and 7 last year, he was working on a farm in Mrijanda Village, Hanang District, Manyara Region.
He testified that on November 7, 2025, he was arrested over allegations of assault causing actual bodily harm, granted bail, and subsequently rearrested on December 23, 2025, to face murder charges.
He told the court he neither assaulted nor killed Mr Kessy, requesting full acquittal.
Court ruling
Evaluating submissions from both parties, Judge Mwenda stated that the primary issue was whether the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Muna committed the murder.
The judge observed that while the prosecution established the deceased suffered an unnatural death from a brain injury, significant doubt remained regarding the identification of Mr Muna as the attacker.
“After considering all the evidence, I find that although the prosecution proved the deceased met an unnatural death, it failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused caused it,” said Judge Mwenda.
The judge stated that the first witness’s identification of Mr Muna using the electric light (Tanesco) lacked sufficient weight to rule out the possibility of mistaken identity, as the witness failed to describe the light intensity, the duration of observation, or the specific features used for identification.
The court also identified discrepancies regarding a dying declaration allegedly naming Mr Muna, alongside the failure to produce the bottle purportedly used in the fatal attack.
“While claims by the third witness regarding recording the second exhibit raise doubt, despite claiming he recorded and wrote it by his own hand, he struggled to read it as if he had not written it himself,” he observed.
“Furthermore, the witness claimed the statement was recorded at the scene, yet during cross-examination admitted it was taken at Ngumo Police Station. One wonders how the victim could endorse his signature under such circumstances,” the judge added.
The judge noted that the witness failed to demonstrate that the deceased was capable of writing, despite the document bearing a signature attributed to him.
“There are also contradictions in the prosecution’s evidence regarding the weapon allegedly used in the attack, a beer bottle. Although prosecution witnesses claimed the bottle was recovered, it was never tendered as evidence,” he said.
“Failure to produce such crucial evidence creates doubt as to whether the alleged weapon existed and whether it was connected to the injuries sustained by the deceased,” added the judge.
The judge concluded the prosecution failed to prove the charge of murder, declared Mr Muna not guilty, and ordered his immediate release.
