By A, KNA
Seven boys from Tambach high school in Elgeyo Marakwet were arraigned in an Iten court on charges of stealing assorted goods valued at Sh30,000 from one of their teachers.
The seven, who are all in form-four were charged that on the night of October 17 and 18 this year at unknown time within Tambach high school teachers’ quarters, jointly with others not before court they broke and entered the house of Philip Bett.
According to the charge sheet, the boys managed to steal four pieces of bar soap and an equal number of tissue papers, two extension cables, two chargers, a jacket, two T-shirts, a track suit, washing powder and an iron box among others all valued at Sh30,000.
Three of the boys faced an additional charge of being found with the stolen items with one of the accused being found with the extension cable, adaptor and iron box, another one was found with a black jacket and the third one retained a short and a T-shirt.
The boys pleaded not guilty before Iten Principal Magistrate Emily Kigen and were released on a bond of Sh50,000 or a cash bail of Sh20,000 each.
Four of the boys managed to raise the bail were released while the remaining three were taken into custody.
The court ruled that a probono counsel be appointed to represent the accused who are all minors with their case being scheduled for hearing on November 3 this year.
The students had just resumed classes following the closure of the school in July 21 when the students went on the rampage, walking all the way to Iten and insisted on going home saying they were not ready for the end-of-term examinations.
At the time, the sub county director of education, Alice Sitienei pleaded with the students to go back to school and even organised for buses to take them back but they refused necessitating the closure of the school.
The students went back in groups with form-fours going back last week after the lower classes who had reported earlier completed their exams.
Recently during a jukwaa la wasomi inititative which involved young people in colleges, the Elgeyo Marakwet County Commander, Peter Mulinge appealed to students to avoid getting into crime saying once one has a criminal record, he/she cannot get a certificate of good conduct which is mandatory when one is seeking for a job opportunity locally or abroad.