William Ruto’s reaction after ICC drops case

Nairobi. “Hallelujah! God is great. Our God is Faithful.”

This is how Deputy President William Ruto reacted after the International Criminal Court (ICC) declared a mistrial in the case facing him and former radio journalist Joshua arap Sang.

The message was posted on his Twitter and Facebook accounts Tuesday evening following the termination of the case he faced alongside Mr Sang.

Mr Ruto was with Mr Sang and other leaders in his Karen office and was seen hugging and shaking hands with those present after the ruling was delivered.

The smiling deputy president was seen answering phone calls but did not address the media.

His wife, Rachel Ruto, was also at the Karen office and was mobbed and hugged by women when the news of termination of the case against her husband was made. President Uhuru Kenyatta and other leaders congratulated Mr Ruto and Mr Sang and announced that a thanksgiving rally will be held at the Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on April 16.

ICC judges dismissed the charges of crimes against humanity, arguing that the prosecution had failed to present sufficient evidence to convict the suspects.

Judges Chile Eboe-Osuji and Robert Fremr dismissed the evidence presented by ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and freed the DP and the former radio presenter. But Judge Olga Herrera Carbuccia disagreed, arguing that the prosecution’s evidence was sufficient to find the suspects with a case to answer.

Judge Herrera submitted that the prosecution case had not “broken down” to the extent of acquitting the suspects.

At exactly 6 pm last evening, Deputy President William Ruto and his co-accused Joshua arap Sang were freed from of The Hague shackles of more than six years after charges they were facing at the ICC were dropped.

With one Judge dissenting, The Trial Chamber bench declared that the case brought Mr Ruto and Mr Sang a mistrial, dismissed the charges of crimes against humanity arguing that the prosecution had failed to present sufficient evidence to convict the suspects. The judges, however, allowed Ms Bensouda to bring fresh charges against the two if she gets new evidence.

“The charges are hereby vacated and the accused are discharged from the process, without prejudice to their presumption of innocence or the prosecutor’s right (to) re-prosecute the case at a later time,” the judges said. The ICC judges also declared the proceedings “a mistrial due to a troubling incidence of witness interference and intolerable political meddling”. (NMG)