Kasipul MP Charles Were’s bodyguard, driver spoke and held meetings with suspects before the murder
Police say the murder was orchestrated through multiple meetings in Nairobi and Homa Bay long before the MP was shot.
Preliminary investigations have established that Kasipul Member of Parliament Charles Ong’ondo Were’s bodyguard and driver were in communication with suspected planners and executors of his murder.
According to court documents filed on Thursday, detectives believe the two Allan Ogola Omondi (the MP’s bodyguard) and Walter Owino Awino (his driver) were in touch with the suspects both before and after the fatal shooting, in what police are calling a well-coordinated and premeditated crime.
More To Read
- Kasipul MP Were murder case: Suspects to know fate on Friday as police seek to detain them for 30 days
- Were murder probe: Detectives trace suspicious call to MP's bodyguard belonging to deceased woman
- Lawyers want politician Aroko produced in court as probe into MP Were's murder continues
- Governor Sakaja urged to ensure Nairobi CBD CCTV cameras work after MP Were's killing
- We won’t be intimidated, those behind dad’s killing must be unmasked, MP Were’s son vows
- People trusted by Kasipul MP Charles Were helped plan his murder - Interior CS Murkomen
“Preliminary investigations have revealed that [Omondi and Awino] were in communication with some of the planners and executors of this crime before and after this fatal incident,” Inspector of Police Oliver Nabonwe said.
He added that the investigation has uncovered that the murder, which occurred on April 30 near the City Mortuary roundabout along Valley Road in Nairobi, was orchestrated through multiple meetings in Nairobi and Homa Bay long before the MP was shot.
“This crime was planned well before its execution, with meetings within and outside Nairobi. Therefore, more investigations will be conducted in Nairobi, Homa Bay and several other counties, a process that will require more time,” he said.
Police are now seeking the arrest of five more individuals, including the MP’s bodyguard, his driver, and a neighbour from his rural home in Kasipul, Homa Bay County, Ebel Ochieng alias Dave Calo.
The three, along with two other suspects, Edwin Oduor Odhiambo and Dennis Sewe Manyasi, were arrested in Nairobi’s Umoja Two estate and Nakuru. They have been remanded in custody for 30 days as detectives finalise investigations.
As of now, the arrests bring the total number of suspects in custody to 10, including businessman Philip Nahashon Aroko, who was also picked up as a person of interest in the ongoing investigation. According to the police affidavit, the assailants who are believed to have trailed the MP from Parliament before the shooting are Odhiambo and Manyasi.
During a search at Odhiambo’s house in Mihang’o, Nairobi, investigators recovered two pistols with magazines and bullets, four mobile phones, and five Airtel SIM cards. Police plan to conduct forensic analysis to compare the firearms with bullet fragments found on the MP’s body during the autopsy.
The investigation also revealed that Ochieng, a neighbour to the MP in his rural home in Homa Bay, had previously threatened the lawmaker.
Ochieng has been “adversely mentioned by some suspects already in custody as the person behind the planning and execution of the crime,” Nabonwe said.
To further their investigation, police are relying on CCTV footage from the Integrated Command, Control and Communication Centre (IC3) and private cameras along the route the MP took before he was killed. They are also conducting mobile phone triangulation and forensic analysis of the devices recovered from the suspects.
“Through mobile phone triangulation and interrogation of witnesses, people of interest, and the suspects’ accomplices who are already in lawful custody, it has been revealed that all five suspects were in constant communication immediately before, during, and after the commission of the crime,” Nabonwe said in court papers.
Nabonwe further explained that the suspects were tracked near the crime scene, which strengthened the evidence of their involvement in the murder. The investigation team is also focusing on additional crime scenes that could provide more evidence on the planning and execution of the crime.
“The investigation has identified more scenes of crime where it is believed that this murder was planned and orchestrated before the execution. These scenes need to be visited for documentation and retrieval of more evidence that will, in turn, be used in the interviewing and interrogation of all the respondents so far arrested,” Nabonwe said.
The police have asked the court for permission to confiscate the mobile phones and SIM cards recovered from the suspects to conduct forensic analysis and retrieve call data records that may shed light on the motive behind the murder.
Meanwhile, businessman Philip Aroko, who has denied any involvement in the crime, is seeking release on bond. His lawyer, Danstan Omari, argued that Aroko has been held without justification and has always been willing to assist the police.
“Mr Aroko denies any knowledge of or involvement in the said offence and maintains that he has at all material times been willing and available to assist the investigative authorities in any lawful manner, including the provision of statements, attendance for interviews, or any other reasonable inquiry,” Omari said.
The lawyer also emphasised that Aroko is a law-abiding citizen with a good reputation.
Four other suspects, William Imoli Shighali, Juma Ali Haikal (an Administration Police officer), Douglas Muchiri Wambugu, and David Mihigo Kagame, were arrested last week and are also being held for 30 days pending the conclusion of investigations.
Top Stories Today
