On August 10, 2023, Patience Cherotich is charged with setting fire to a home on TRM Drive in Kasarani, Nairobi.
The charge sheet states, "You did willfully and unlawfully set fire to a structure used as a bedroom, valued at Sh120,000, belonging to Benjamin Obeten, at Veeland Apartments on the 10th day of August, 2023."
The complainant and the accused in the case had a romantic relationship that ended.
Obeten, a Nigerian, agreed after Cherotich asked him to let her visit him at his house.
She allegedly caused havoc in the home as soon as she got there, allegedly threatening to kill Obeten, which prompted him to ask for assistance from the apartment's security guards, who then forcibly escorted the accused out of the residence.
But after leaving her out in the cold for several hours, Obeten felt sorry for her and let her back inside so she could spend the night and wake up back at her house.
She allegedly slept on a couch in Obeten's living room and at around five in the morning started pounding on the complainant's bedroom door requesting to be let in.
Obeten opened the door and the complaint came out and went into the living room, leaving Cherotich alone in the bedroom as he stormed in to tell her to stop creating a mess.
She emerged a little while later and requested a taxi fare; Obeten handed her Sh1,200 before she hurriedly left.
He observed smoke and a few minutes later discovered that the house was on fire. He rushed inside to discover burning bedding and other belongings.
Before he put out the fire with the assistance of neighbors, it had already devoured the entire bed, bedding, and a number of other belongings.
Obeten later reported the incident to the Kasarani Police Station, and after thorough investigation, the accused was located and taken into custody.
On September 13, in front of Senior Principal Magistrate Agnes Mwangi of the Makadara Law Courts, she refuted the accusations and requested reasonable bail conditions through a lawyer.
She claimed in court to be the sole parent of a seven-year-old kid who was abandoned after her incarceration.
Cherotich was granted freedom after posting a surety bond of Sh200,000.
Before the trial on April 12 of the following year, on November 14, 2023, the case will be mentioned.