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Aristocrat guilty of manslaughter Aristocrat guilty of manslaughter
(40 minutes later)
A white Kenyan aristocrat has been found guilty of the manslaughter of a poacher on his estate in 2006. A white Kenyan aristocrat has been cleared of murder but found guilty of the manslaughter of a black poacher on his estate in 2006.
A judge in Nairobi ruled Thomas Cholmondeley did not murder Robert Njoya in May 2006, but had shot him. A judge ruled Thomas Cholmondeley did not show "malice aforethought" in the shooting of Robert Njoya in May 2006.
Mr Cholmondeley had denied murder, saying he had shot at poachers' dogs in a case attracting huge media attention. The case, involving the descendant of one of Kenya's first British settlers, has been followed closely in Kenya.
The 40-year-old was acquitted of murdering a Maasai ranger in 2005 - a ruling that stoked racial tension in the East African country. Mr Cholmondeley was acquitted of a similar murder in 2005, stoking racial tension in the East African country.
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.
'No malice''No malice'
High Court Justice Muga Apondi read out his 320-page verdict to a packed courtroom in the Kenyan capital. The courtroom in the Kenyan capital Nairobi was packed with lawyers, reporters, cameramen, and family and friends of Thomas Cholmondeley, the BBC's Adam Mynott in court said.
There were gasps of surprise as High Court Justice Muga Apondi gave his ruling after reading out a 320-page verdict on the case, although the defendant himself remained impassive.
"I find as a fact that it was the accused who had shot the deceased resulting in his death," he said."I find as a fact that it was the accused who had shot the deceased resulting in his death," he said.
"In view of the above analysis I hereby find which I do, that the accused did not have any malice aforethought to kill the deceased.""In view of the above analysis I hereby find which I do, that the accused did not have any malice aforethought to kill the deceased."
He said he had therefore decided Mr Cholmondeley should be acquitted of the murder charge, but found guilty of manslaughter.He said he had therefore decided Mr Cholmondeley should be acquitted of the murder charge, but found guilty of manslaughter.
He will be sentenced at a later date. The Eton-educated 40-year-old, who has spent the last three years in jail, will be sentenced next week.
Surprise outcome
The incident took place in a remote corner of his family's massive 100,000-acre farm in the Rift Valley region, acquired by his great-grandfather the third Baron Delamere.
Mr Cholmondeley told police at the time Mr Njoya was with three companions and a pack of dogs and he suspected them of poaching a gazelle.
He said he had shot at the dogs, killing two of them. Mr Njoya was hit by a bullet, later dying on the way to hospital.
Mr Cholmondeley's defence had argued that he could not have fired the deadly shot.
The judge's verdict is contrary to the non-binding not guilty verdict found by a panel of lay assessors - who do a similar job to juries in Kenya - in March.
The outcome will surprise some who followed the case closely, our correspondent says.
But it will please those Kenyans who believe Thomas Cholmondeley should not have been acquitted over the shooting of Maasai ranger Samson Ole Sisina on his estate in 2005.
Mr Cholmondeley, a divorced father of two, had admitted the shooting, but 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.