A lawyer accused of killing his colleague over a bottle of whisky seven years ago caused a stir at the Eldoret High Court after refusing to be referred to as a “counsel” during his cross-examination.
The accused, Abel Mogaka, told Presiding Judge Robert Wananda that he was uncomfortable being repeatedly addressed as a lawyer, saying it could jeopardise his professional career.
“Please don’t refer to me as a counsel in your cross-examination and just refer to me by my name,” Mogaka told senior state counsel Brenda Oduor.
The court heard that Mogaka is charged with murdering his colleague, Calvine Ngaira, over a dispute involving a bottle of whisky at an apartment in the Annex area on the outskirts of Eldoret City in Uasin Gishu County.
The incident is alleged to have occurred on May 18, 2019, during a gathering attended by several people.
Mogaka, who is out on bond, denied the murder charge.
During cross-examination, he admitted to a physical altercation with the deceased but insisted he acted in self-defence.
“The late Ngaira was the aggressor and attacked me with a bottle, causing injuries to my head and hands as I defended myself,” he told the court.
He denied allegations that he used a broken bottle to fatally stab the deceased, saying he could not explain how the weapon was found at the scene.
Mogaka further told the court that he was arrested after receiving treatment for injuries he allegedly sustained during the fight.
He also claimed that CCTV footage presented in court had been tampered with to favour the prosecution.
The court heard that Ngaira suffered fatal stab wounds to the neck and died while being rushed to a private hospital in Eldoret.
He was the only son of retired Eldoret-based public school principal Hesbon Ngaira.
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