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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Verdict due for Kenya aristocrat | Verdict due for Kenya aristocrat |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A judge has begun reading out his 320-page verdict in the case of a white Kenyan aristocrat accused of murdering a man caught poaching on his estate. | A judge has begun reading out his 320-page verdict in the case of a white Kenyan aristocrat accused of murdering a man caught poaching on his estate. |
| Thomas Cholmondeley, 40, a descendant of British settler Lord Delamere, has admitted firing at several dogs in May 2006 but denied killing Robert Njoya. | |
| This is the second murder charge the Eton-educated aristocrat has faced. | This is the second murder charge the Eton-educated aristocrat has faced. |
| His acquittal over the 2005 killing of a Maasai ranger stoked racial tension in the East African country. | |
| Assessors' verdict | |
| Thomas Cholmondeley arrived at court in a prison bus amid heavy security for Thursday's verdict, Reuters news agency reports. | Thomas Cholmondeley arrived at court in a prison bus amid heavy security for Thursday's verdict, Reuters news agency reports. |
| If found guilty, he could face the death penalty. | If found guilty, he could face the death penalty. |
| Mr Cholmondeley, accompanied by a friend, came across Robert Njoya, a 37-year-old stonemason and father of four, in a remote corner of his family's ranch in May 2006. | |
| At the time of his arrest, he told police Mr Njoya had three companions and a pack of dogs and he suspected them of poaching a gazelle. | |
| He says he shot at the dogs, killing two of them. Mr Njoya was hit by a bullet, later dying on the way to hospital, but Mr Cholmondeley says he could not have fired the deadly shot. | |
| The trial was watched by a panel of lay assessors - who do a similar job to juries in Kenya - and gave a not guilty verdict in early March. Their verdict is not binding on the judge. | |
| Mr Cholmondeley, a divorced father of two, was acquitted in 2005 of shooting Maasai ranger Samson Ole Sisina. | |
| Although he admitted the shooting, he said he acted in self-defence mistaking the warden for an armed robber. | |
| The case was dropped for lack of evidence and his release prompted national outrage and mass protests from Maasais. | |
| Much of Kenya's most fertile land was given to white settlers during the colonial era and this remains the case 46 years after independence - a fact resented by many Kenyans. | Much of Kenya's most fertile land was given to white settlers during the colonial era and this remains the case 46 years after independence - a fact resented by many Kenyans. |
| Mr Cholmondeley is heir to a massive 100,000-acre farm in the Rift Valley region, acquired by his great-grandfather the third Baron Delamere, who was one of Kenya's first white settlers. |