Stephen Munyakho, a Kenyan man who spent 14 years on death row in Saudi Arabia, has arrived in Kenya.
Stephen landed at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Monday night, July 29, shortly before midnight.
Family members, friends and government officials, led by Foreign Affairs PS Korir Sing’Oei were at the airport to receive him in an emotional homecoming.
Stephen Munyakho arrives in Kenya. Photo: Courtesy.
In a brief but heartfelt statement, Munyakho expressed gratitude for the support he received over the years during his incarceration.
He had been on death row at Shimeisi Prison in Mecca after his conviction for the death of a Yemeni colleague, Abdul Halim Mujahid Makrad Saleh, during a workplace altercation in April 2011.
Initially convicted of manslaughter in October 2011, his sentence was later elevated to the death penalty by a Shariah court in June 2014.
Under Sharia law, the victim’s family has the option to accept ‘diya’ or blood money in lieu of execution and in 2019, Saleh’s family agreed to a compensation of 10 million Saudi riyals which was subsequently reduced to 3.5 million riyals in November 2023.
Due to diplomatic interventions by the Kenyan government, Munyakho’s execution was postponed multiple times to allow for the settlement of the blood money.
The initial execution date of May 13, 2024, was extended to November 26, 2024, and later postponed by another year to November 26, 2025.
Munyakho was released from prison on Tuesday, July 22, after the required Ksh129 million blood money was fully paid.
