MOMBASA, Kenya – A Kenyan High Court has sentenced 40-year-old Murad Awadh Mbarak to 30 years in prison for murdering his wife Nuru Ibrahim in what prosecutors called a social media fueled dispute. The killing is said to have come about over Ibrahim’s use of the social media platform, Instagram.
The court heard that Mbarak stabbed his wife several times at their home in Majengo Kanamai in Kilifi County after he accused her of creating an Instagram account behind his back, going against his wishes, leading to a confrontation.
The court was told by prosecutors that Ibrahim’s use of the social media was what the couple was arguing over prior to the attack. Ibrahim was killed at the home by her husband in June of 2022, and the case has been on the Mombasa law courts for the last few years.
The judge during sentencing said that the killing was brutal and unjustified and that there is no way that a dispute within a marriage can justify the beating of a person to death. He said that the crime was a serious one and that “The accused took the life of a woman who was entitled to dignity and freedom”. “It is the duty of the court to send a clear message that this should not happen again,” said the judge.
The State which was being represented by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Kenya, said that the attack on Ibrahim by Mbarak was a premeditated act that had been well thought out and that during the trial, clear evidence of Mbarak’s intention to inflict death had been presented.
Court papers show that Nuru Ibrahim was 28-years old at the time of her death and medical reports revealed that she suffered several stab wounds from the knife Murad Mbarak used during the attack. Ibrahim’s family members attended several sittings during the trial which drew significant media coverage in Kenya due to the social media factor of the motive.
