Arusha. The Court of Appeal has acquitted Mr Emmanuel Kulwa, who was sentenced to death for the murder of his grandparents, after finding the prosecution’s evidence contradictory and unreliable.
Mr Kulwa had been convicted by the High Court Mwanza Registry on two counts of murder, contrary to Sections 196 and 197 of the Penal Code, following the discovery of the bodies of Kalekwa Kazwenge and Donat Kasinga in a pit latrine at their home.
However, a three-judge appellate panel comprising Justices Augustine Mwarija, Lameck Mlacha, and Immaculata Banzi overturned the ruling on Friday, August 21, 2026, citing failure by the prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Delivering the judgment in Criminal Appeal No. 9513127 of 2024, Justice Banzi noted that with no eyewitnesses to the murders, the trial court relied heavily on circumstantial evidence and a caution statement presented as Mr Kulwa's confession.
The prosecution had called five witnesses. The first, Ms Faida Dotto, testified that on March 28, 2020, Mr Kulwa offered to sell her land.
The following day, she accompanied others to Bukoli Primary School, where blood-stained clothing and identity cards belonging to the deceased were found.
The third witness, Ms Elizabeth Mashauri, testified that Mr Kulwa had been staying with the couple and possessed their house keys.
Upon his arrest, Mr Kulwa claimed the couple had travelled to Ushirombo.
Witnesses subsequently visited the house, noticed a foul smell and blood at the entrance, and found the couple's bodies inside a pit latrine alongside an axe, a machete, and a spear.
A medical examiner confirmed cut wounds caused fatal bleeding, while a police detective testified that Mr Kulwa confessed at Bukoli Police Station.
In his defence, Mr Kulwa denied involvement, claiming he was lured to the scene, arrested without explanation, and forced to view the items. He maintained he never gave a caution statement.
Re-evaluating the evidence, the appellate justices identified critical inconsistencies, particularly regarding the caution statement.
Records showed the investigating officer claimed to be drawing a crime scene sketch map at 2:30 am while simultaneously recording Kulwa's statement at Bukoli Police Station, locations 20 minutes apart by car.
“In our view, the fifth witness couldn't be at the scene of the crime at 2:30 pm and at the same time be at Bukoli Police Station,” said Justice Banzi, adding that the discrepancy created reasonable doubt over the statement's authenticity.
The court further highlighted investigative flaws concerning the murder weapons.
Witnesses gave conflicting accounts as to whether the axe, machete, and spear were blood-stained, and the prosecution failed to produce them as exhibits in court.
“If the weapons had bloodstains and were not seized, it proves the case was poorly investigated. Assuming they were seized, failing to present them as exhibits casts serious doubt on the prosecution’s case,” noted Justice Banzi.
He concluded that the evidence fell short of the legal standard; hence the bench quashed the conviction, set aside the death sentence, and ordered Mr Kulwa’s immediate release.
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