The mask of piety has been ripped off to reveal a cold-blooded killer. Stephen Nderitu, a 70-year-old pastor revered for his dedication to the church, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the brutal murder of his wife, Rosa Chokchok. The crime, committed on the eve of Valentine's Day, has left a community in Nakuru grappling with the horrifying duality of a man of God turned murderer.

Justice Samwel Mohochi of the Nakuru High Court handed down the sentence, bringing a grim closure to a case that exposed the dark underbelly of domestic violence concealed behind religious titles. Nderitu killed his wife of 42 years using a panga and a hammer, weapons of utility turned into instruments of death, in a maize field on their family farm.

The Horror in the Maize Field

The details of the crime are chilling. On that fateful night, Nderitu dragged Rosa from the kitchen where she was sleeping with their 15-year-old daughter. The dispute, petty and domestic—a refusal to milk cows due to illness and a rejection of conjugal demands—escalated into a massacre. After bludgeoning her to death, the "man of God" attempted to dispose of her body like garbage.

• The Cover-Up: Nderitu dumped Rosa's body headfirst into a disused well and covered it with maize stalks from the recent harvest, hoping the earth would swallow his sin.
• The Witness: The couple's teenage daughter provided the damning testimony that sealed her father's fate. She recounted the screams, the dragging, and the terrifying silence that followed.

A Betrayal of Faith

The sentencing has sent shockwaves through the congregation where Nderitu preached. To them, he was a shepherd; to his wife, he was a butcher. "The body was pushed in headfirst in an attempt to conceal it," Justice Mohochi noted in his ruling, highlighting the calculated malice of the act. The judge's words painted a picture of a man who, despite his age and standing, possessed a capacity for extreme violence.

Ten years behind bars for a life taken may seem lenient to some, especially given the brutality of the act. However, for a 70-year-old, it is effectively a life sentence. Nderitu will likely breathe his last within the cold walls of a prison, far from the pulpit he once commanded.

This case serves as a tragic reminder that domestic violence knows no age, status, or creed. Rosa Chokchok’s voice was silenced by the man sworn to cherish her, but the gavel of justice has finally spoken for her.