A court in Mombasa has sentenced a former student of Maseno University to 20 years in prison for terror related offences.
Samuel Wanjala Wabwire alias Salim Mohamed, who was a madrassa teacher before his incarceration, was found guilty of recruiting and radicalising school going children in Kilifi.
His intention was to conscript them into the Al Shabaab terror group that has caused many deaths in Somalia, Kenya and Uganda.
Mombasa Law Courts Principal Magistrate Diana Mochache passed the harsh judgement against Wabwire who was arrested in April 2015 for readying the pupils at Gotani Primary School in Kilifi County into joining the militant group that recently split into two: one paying allegiance to Al Qaeda and the other to ISIS.
Wabwire pleaded with the magistrate to be lenient on him, saying he
was newly married and had a one year old child and he needed to take
care of them.
He further said that the school had set him up and it appears he was no longer wanted even by the parents at the institution.
Before his expulsion, he was pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. He is said to have been admitted to the university in 2011, the same year that he was expelled. At the time, he was 21 years old.
Samuel Wanjala Wabwire alias Salim Mohamed, who was a madrassa teacher before his incarceration, was found guilty of recruiting and radicalising school going children in Kilifi.
His intention was to conscript them into the Al Shabaab terror group that has caused many deaths in Somalia, Kenya and Uganda.
Mombasa Law Courts Principal Magistrate Diana Mochache passed the harsh judgement against Wabwire who was arrested in April 2015 for readying the pupils at Gotani Primary School in Kilifi County into joining the militant group that recently split into two: one paying allegiance to Al Qaeda and the other to ISIS.
“The accused took advantage of the poverty rate in the region by offering the children some food, using it as a bait to trap them. Most children walked bare feet and their uniforms were tattered … The accused person deserves no mercy, he needs protection from himself, he has already sold his soul to the devil and was on the process of selling others,” said Mochache as quoted in the Nation.
Former
Maseno University student Samuel Wanjala Wabwire alias Salim Mohamed
being escorted out of Mombasa Law Courts following his sentencing to 20
years in prison on January, December 7, 2016. Image-Nation.
“I am a victim of circumstances and hatred. If the school and parents never wanted me in the village, they should have informed me to leave because I have plans to pursue my education further,” he said as quoted by Citizen TV.Wabwire who took up the name Salim Mohamed following conversion to Islam was expelled from Maseno University in 2011 for allegedly stabbing a student. He however said he was suspended for 1000 days for leading a student strike at the university.
Before his expulsion, he was pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. He is said to have been admitted to the university in 2011, the same year that he was expelled. At the time, he was 21 years old.
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