A house help has admitted stealing from her employer because she failed to pay her for several months.

Violet Ayuma on Wednesday told Kibera senior principal magistrate that she stole cash and other valuables so she could pay for medication for her ailing father and feed her children.

"I stole the money which was in US dollars, converted it to Kenyan shillings and used it to treat my ailing dad," Ayuma said.

She told the court she decided to steal because she hadn't been paid for months.

"She had not paid me for some months hence I decided to steal."

The maid had been charged with stealing $5,000, three bed sheets, a duvet, tot glasses, handbags, two perfumes, assorted pieces of jewellery and other households items on unknown dates between August 25 and November last year.

The offences were committed in an apartment along Muthithi Road in Westlands.

Ayuma was also charged with handling goods suspected to have been stolen. She pleaded guilty to the charges.

The charge sheet said she stole from Nasreen Rasool who was the complainant.

The prosecution said the accused had been employed as a house help by the complainant.

"The complainant noted that her items were missing and she quickly learned that the accused person had left the house unceremoniously. She then looked at the house and found out that the items had been stolen."

An investigation was immediately launched leading to the arrest of the house help.

Ayuma pleaded for leniency saying she had a young family. She asked for a non-custodial jail term.

"If you jail me today, not me but my children will suffer, forgive me," she said.

Maroro sentenced her to three years in jail. She was given 14 days to appeal.

-The Star/ Claus Masika