Cholmondeley family bows to pressure, offers compensation for slain ranger

The families of the late Tom Cholmondeley and the late KWS ranger Samson Ole Sisina have concluded negotiations on compensation ahead of his burial on Friday.

Mr Cholmondeley's father and mother agreed to compensation demands by Mr Sisina's widow Lucy Sisina and 22-year-old son John Esho and has given the family 49 cattle.

The two were part of Thursday’s negotiations.

They have also undertaken to educate Mr Sisina's eight children to university and build the family a decent house.

Twenty-seven elders from the Maasai community were part of the 30-member delegation that travelled from Narok to Mr Cholmondeley's Soysambu ranch in Naivasha where the negotiations were held the whole day.

Only six elders were, however, allowed to take part in the negotiations as the rest waited.

Mr Sisina’s family, which lost a murder case that was filed against Mr Cholmondeley 11 years ago, was demanding 49 cows, a commitment by the Delamere family to educate all his children to university level, 27 acres of the Delamere’s expansive ranch and a commitment to finance all projects that the late Sisina was undertaking before he was killed.

Mr Cholmondeley, who died while receiving treatment at MP Shah Hospital in Nairobi, will be laid to rest on Saturday.

The family of Mr Sisina, who was shot dead by Mr Cholmondeley, speaking immediately after news of his death last week, declared that it would not allow the late billionaire to be buried until his family met its compensation demands.

RITUALS

Maasai elders recently conducted a ritual at the gravesite of the late Sisina, cursing his killers, after attempts to reopen an inquiry into his death hit a snag.

They claimed the ritual was strong and that it would affect the Delamere family if it declined to honour its compensation demands.

Mr Sisina’s widow appeared to concur, at a separate interview at the family home in Olemutel Village, Mosiro ward, Narok East, last week.

“This might not end very soon, as far as the blood of my husband is not paid for,” she had said.

“According to the Maa culture, there are more misfortunes on the way. My children are living in abject poverty, they have stopped going to school and their tears will continue haunting them,” Mrs Sisina told the Nation.

Mr Cholmondeley shot to news headlines in April 2005 after he shot Mr Sisina — an undercover KWS ranger — who he said, had trespassed onto his vast Soysambu ranch in Naivasha.

It was said the late Sisina was killed on the farm when he went to investigate the source of game meat.

Mr Cholmondeley claimed he shot the ranger in self-defence, saying he had been fired at first.

Then Attorney-General Amos Wako terminated the case against him, saying there was no evidence.

Just last month, the family of Mr Sisina had petitioned Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko to launch fresh investigations into the case after disowning an order made by Mr Wako 10 years ago.

It demanded a fresh public inquest into the death.