**Fatshimetry**
A recent high-profile murder case in Kenya has found the roommate of an LGBTQ activist guilty of murdering him. The activist’s body was found hidden in a metal box two years ago.
The High Court judge in Eldoret delivered his verdict on Wednesday, saying the prosecution had proven that Jacktone Odhiambo suffocated Edwin Chiloba before hiding his body in a metal box dumped on the road with the help of his brother and cousin.
Despite denying the murder of his roommate despite the presence of DNA traces on the victim’s body, and despite witnesses who testified that they heard an argument between the two men and saw Odhiambo moving the metal box, Odhiambo was found guilty. DNA evidence revealed an intimate physical relationship between the two men, although the court did not establish a motive for the murder.
Chiloba’s death in January 2023 drew widespread attention at the time due to attitudes toward gay rights in Kenya, where male-to-male relationships are illegal and the LGBTQ community decries discrimination and assault. However, police ruled out the murder as a hate crime and arrested Odhiambo, who shared a home with Chiloba in Eldoret.
Authorities described finding the decomposing body of a man dressed in women’s clothing in a metal box after a motorbike taxi driver saw people throw the box from a car.
Chiloba, who studied fashion design at the University of Eldoret, was widely known in the country’s LGBTQ community for his fashion sense, activism and anti-discrimination.
Kenya is a largely conservative society, and the president has said in the past that gay rights are not a concern in the East African country. This case highlights once again the challenges faced by LGBTQ people in societies where sexual orientation can be a source of discrimination and violence.