Nduta was arrested in July 2023 upon arrival in Hoh Chi Minh for allegedly trafficking two kilos of narcotics. In Vietnam, the laws dictate that those caught trafficking at least 100 grams of narcotics face the death penalty.
This was also the case for Nduta, who was found guilty of the offense. However, the recent amendments of Vietnam’s Penal Code provided Nduta a lifeline as the nation exempted drug trafficking from facing the death sentence.
During a Supreme Court sitting in Hoh Chi Minh City, Nduta pleaded her case and cited that she was a transit passenger set to travel to Laos, a neighbouring Asian Country.
She indicated that she was arrested after a connecting flight was delayed while in possession of the drugs that she claimed were loaded without her knowledge.
She pleaded with the Court for a reduced sentence in line with the recent changes in law. Upon review, the Supreme Court judges deemed that she was guilty but commuted the sentence from death penalty to life imprisonment.
Nduta will, however, still have an opportunity to seek clemency, whose powers are vested in the Vietnamese President.
Following her initial death sentence, the Kenyan government intervened by formally requesting a stay of execution.
Prime CS Musalia Mudavadi and co. followed up with more diplomatic channels to secure her acquittal.
In his latest statement, Mudavadi stated that his office is currently working to repatriate more than 1,000 Kenyans incarcerated abroad.
The CS pleaded with Kenyans traveling abroad to be vigilant of a country’s laws to avoid such incidents.
“Please, young Kenyans that are going out, remember that the moment you board a plane and the wheels have lifted, when you land in whatever country you’re going into, the laws that apply are not Kenyan laws,” Mudavadi said in March 2025.
