The Narok High Court has delivered a judgement for Sh 553 million against Keekorok Lodge in Masai Mara where a Chinese tourist was stabbed and died in 2016.
Luo Jinli 45, a Chinese foreigner had checked in the hotel accompanied by her husband, their son and other family members on August 8, 2016, where they booked for 10 days.
According to the statement presented before the court by Jong Yi the husband of the deceased, they arrived at the hotel at around 3:00 PM and were welcomed by their tour guide Bai Jiang.
On the night of that day, the family went to have dinner in a restaurant within the hotel which was almost full to its capacity where most of the guests were Chinese foreigners and they had a reserved table which was tagged with their names and they occupied.
In his statement, the husband of the deceased said he went to the buffer table to serve his food when he heard a verbal altercation in Chinese language between his wife and another Chinese man whom he could not recognize.
“I heard a commotion towards where my wife was and I saw her exchanging words with a man whom I did not recognize, although I came to know him later as Lee Changpin,” stated Jong Yi in his statement.
Jong could overhear a man repeatedly shouting profanities and abusive words in Chinese looking at his wife.
Mr Changpin claimed the table they occupied was not reserved for them and he became persistent that it was his (Changpin) table and they must relocate to another.
Luo Jinli the deceased never ceased to tell him the table was reserved for them because it was tagged and there was no compromise on that.
Immediately before the husband gets back to take his sit at their table, Changpin leaves and shortly comes back with a steak knife from one of the tables in the restaurant.
He came straight towards their table concealing the knife at the back and started to confront her again throwing a barrage of curses.
He attacked Jinli stabbing her in the abdomen and when the husband tried to intervene, the man became furious and turned against him leaving them with serious injuries.
The guests were attracted by the commotion and everybody was staring at them but when the wife screamed they intervened and that was when they realized the duo had been injured.
The wife was taken out into a waiting vehicle with the help of hotel staff and other guests where Jong was also helped and taken to a nearby dispensary to get first aid from a stab wound on his hand but later his wife was pronounced dead and Jong was transferred to Nairobi Hospital.
The deceased husband through his lawyer Nectar Maloba filed a suit before the high court in Narok against the hotel management for what he termed as negligence and failure of the hotel management to protect the deceased from the attack.
Mr Maloba argued that Luo Jinli was a guest in Keekorok Lodge and her safety was guaranteed by the hotel where they could have prevented the attack.
He added that the hotel security was supposed to get involved and protect against the fatal attack since the tourists were under their security whenever they camped on their premises.
In the suit, he prayed for general damages incurred from pain and suffering, damages under the fatal accident act, damages for the loss of a dependency, damages for loss of life’s expectation and special damages of Sh 2,065,100.
He also sought interest on damages sought to save for special damages from the date of judgment to the date of payment in full and interest on special damages from the date of cause of action is August 8, 2016plus the cost of the suit and any further relief the court may deem just.
In his judgement, Justice Francis Gikonyo stated that “the final judgement is entered for the plaintiff against the defendant” and he clarified that the defendant is hundred per cent liable.
The total damages incurred which will be paid to the family of the deceased amounted to Sh 553,274,960.