Sharon Otieno murder: Obado’s aide denies relationship with deceased, seeks exoneration
Oyamo told High Court Judge Cecilia Githua that police conducted a DNA test of him and Sharon's fetus, which revealed that he was not responsible for the pregnancy.
Michael Oyamo, the personal aide to former Migori Governor Okoth Obado and the second accused in the Sharon Otieno murder case, told a Nairobi court on Wednesday that he had no personal relationship with the deceased, as he sought to clear his name from the charges.
Oyamo told High Court Judge Cecilia Githua that police conducted a DNA test of him and Sharon's fetus, which revealed that he was not responsible for the pregnancy.
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Oyamo was defending himself after the court ruled that he, Obado and other suspects had a case to answer.
Obado, who is the first accused, has already defended himself.
During his defence hearing, he stated that he was not the biological father of the child the deceased was carrying.
"I came to know Sharon in July 2018, through rumours and later through two gentlemen who called me seeking for appointment with my boss, the then governor of Migori, Okoth Obado," Oyamo told the court.
He said that towards the end of July 2018, he received a call from a new number and the person introduced himself as one Honourable Mula and asked whether he was the governor's PA.
He said Mula told him he had tried reaching out to the governor in vain and asked him if he could help him.
Oyamo, however, said he was not able to do so unless he opened up on what he wanted from the governor.
Mula is said to have later opened up and revealed that there was a woman who had a romantic relationship with the governor and was pregnant for him.
He revealed that the woman had reached out to him for assistance after unsuccessful trials of reaching out to Obado failed.
Mula told Oyamo that they had also contacted a journalist who was going to publish their story if his boss did not act. He then told him that the journalist would call him to explain their predicament and hung up.
"When I asked him what the story was about, he said the lady was pregnant and the governor had abandoned her, so they had sought a journalist's intervention to publish the story for them to get the governor's attention," Oyamo told the court.
According to Oyamo, 10 minutes later, a new number called him. He asked the man on the phone how he got his number, and he said he got it from his colleague who was working with the governor's communication office.
The late Otieno then called Obado's aide, and after they talked, he assured them that he would talk to his boss and get back to them.
Later, the accused informed his boss, who told him he was already aware of the issue and he was handling the situation, revealing that Honourable John Mbadi had given him a journalist's contacts.
"My lady, it took me some time to process what I had been told, then I got the courage and told my boss about the matter, who then told me that Honourable John Mbadi had called him and had given him the XYZ phone number," Oyamo told the court.
The accused told the court that after about three days, his boss gave him Sh200,000 in cash and instructed him to take it to Mula.
On reaching their meeting point, he found the late Lawrence Mula in the company XYZ and the woman, and on handing over the money to him, he instructed him to give it to the woman because it was meant for her.
On August 15, 2018, Oyamo was sent again by his boss to take Sh100,000 to Mula for Sharon's welfare.
However, the following day, he received a call from Sharon telling him an issue had emerged between Mula and XYZ; the journalist was complaining about him meeting Mula in his absence.
In his response, the PA told Sharon that he had clear instructions from his boss to hand over the money to Mula. He then called Mula to know what had happened, and he told him they had argued over the phone with XYZ.
"Mula told me they had exchanged words through phone calls, and it was because I had met him alone and gave him the cash, which he gave Sharon, yet they had agreed that in any meeting from the governor's side, they should all be there," Oyamo told the court.
Their falling-out made Sharon seek intervention through the governor, and she reached out to Oyamo to get them an appointment with Obado to settle the issue.
The court adjourned the hearing to today (Thursday).
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