Former TV anchor Esther Arunga has been described as one of the luckiest girls after an Australian court sentenced her to 10 months on parole after she pleaded guilty to lying to about her son’s death in 2014.
There was speculation that the controversial lawyer and media personality could face up to 25 Years in Prison. But she will not be in custody if she stays out of trouble.
The former KTN TV anchor on Monday pleaded guilty to being an accessory to murder after the fact to manslaughter.cMs Arunga had admitted to lying to the police in a bid to help her husband, Quincy Timberlake, avoid punishment.
Mr Timberlake is accused of killing their son Sinclair Timberlake who died due to blunt force trauma to the abdomen in 2014 in their family home in Kallangur, Australia.
In his ruling on Thursday, Justice Burns is quoted by the Australian Associated Press as saying that he was sympathetic to her situation when she spoke to the police investigating her son’s death.
“You must be taken to have been in shock at the death of your son, at the times when you were interviewed… and further to be grieving at your loss. You went from being a wife and a mother, who was at that time nursing a six-month-old baby, and who was otherwise trying to establish your young family in a new country, to losing your son, husband, and daughters,” he said.
Arunga’s sentence has been described as one of the most lenient with a section of Kenyans aligning it to her strong belief in God.
“merciful God of second chance ! ,” one Margret reacted.
merciful God of second chance
— Margaret Muthoni (@Maggskas) July 18, 2019
10 months, in Parole, really? We leave it to God’s verdict now 🤷🏽♂️
— Wang’ombe Kariuki (@wang_kariuki) July 18, 2019
That’s fair enough….
— KOILEKEN™ (@mpusia) July 18, 2019
Numerous tweeps are as well bashing media houses for creating for what to them is fake speculations on her facing 25 years in prison.
Now that Esther Arunga has been sentenced to 10 months on parole, Nation itaambia nini watu? #FailedJudiciary pic.twitter.com/wYAe7eHUUl
— Levie Kiliad Msafiri (@sinimsafiri) July 18, 2019
The editors of our Kenyan dailies have just become so lazy and can’t even be happy to associated with such people as a Kenyan.
— Barkachai keitany (@Barkatea) July 18, 2019
Extremely lazy sensational journalism, simple online research on Australian criminal sentencing jurisprudence, would have foreseen this outcome!
— oburru otema ramogo (@oburruchagga) July 18, 2019
Is English that hard to understand. The term “faces” in this context only means a possible outcome not a guaranteed one. It could be zero jail term or the 25 years they put.
— Yohana Kibe Mungai🇰🇪 (@kibeyohana) July 18, 2019
But, in this case to face doesn’t mean the sentence was already passed. The 25 years was a possibility.
— Linda Agola (@AgolaLinda) July 18, 2019