Three people have been convicted over the 2018 murder of a Nairobi businessman who was allegedly lured to Kilifi County with the promise of securing a Sh23 million county government tender.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Wendy Kagendo Micheni, former Kilifi County driver Eddlied Mandi Jilani, Makonde Ruwa Buni and Ngira Karisa Charo were found guilty of murdering Kassim Jiraw, also known as Sokorow.
The judge ruled that the prosecution had proved the offence of murder beyond reasonable doubt.
"I find that the standard of proof was met and all the ingredients of the offence of murder were proved. I therefore find that the three accused persons committed the offence of murder contrary to Section 203 as read with Section 204 of the Penal Code, and are accordingly convicted and found guilty," Justice Micheni said in her judgment.
She further held that the unlawful killing of Jiraw was the natural and probable consequence of a common design, making each of the three accused equally criminally responsible for his death.
Following the conviction, the court cancelled the bond terms of the first and second accused and issued a warrant of arrest for the third accused.
Justice Micheni also ordered the preparation of pre-sentence reports, with mitigation and sentencing scheduled for July 30, 2026.
The court heard that Jiraw had paid Sh650,000 as facilitation fees after being promised a Sh23 million tender to supply X-ray foils and air conditioners to hospitals in Kilifi County.
He had also been offered a position on the county's tender committee.
According to evidence presented before the court, the tender was later awarded to another person. The prosecution told the court that Jiraw was subsequently called to Kilifi to formalise an agreement, marking the last time he was seen alive.
Days later, his defaced and charred body was found dumped in the Arabuko Sokoke Forest in Malindi.
A post-mortem examination conducted at Malindi Level 4 Hospital established that he had been strangled before his body was burned using sulphuric acid.
A business associate testified that Jiraw had transferred money to Mandi as part of the tender arrangement and that the two had met several times in Kilifi before his disappearance.
During an earlier hearing before Justice Erick Ogola in 2018, Charo confessed to strangling Jiraw and claimed he had been hired by Mandi.
He also alleged that he had been promised a four-year prison sentence in exchange for cooperating.
However, Charo later withdrew the confession, telling the court that it had been obtained through coercion by detectives while he was being transferred between Malindi and Mombasa.
The conviction brings to an end an eight-year trial during which more than 10 prosecution witnesses testified.
The prosecution described the case as an abuse of public office to defraud and kill an innocent citizen.
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