MMU murder suspect to remain in custody pending further medical assessment
Justice Diana Kavedza sitting at Kibera denied Mutinda bond and ordered that he will remain in police cells pending plea taking in the murder on July 28.
The High Court has declined to grant Erick Mutinda, a Multimedia University of Kenya (MMU) student and the prime suspect in the murder of his girlfriend, Sylvia Kemunto, bond pending a further assessment report on his mental health.
Justice Diana Kavedza, sitting at the Kibera Law Courts, denied Mutinda bond and ordered that he remain in police cells pending plea taking in the murder on July 28.
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This follows a report from the psychiatric department that ruled Mutinda is mentally unfit to stand trial, forcing the court to set aside an earlier plea of not guilty by the suspect.
The prosecution had raised concerns about community hostility, where they alleged that following the murder incident, the learners were from the university.
The judge said that this could suggest lingering tension and unresolved emotions within the community. Hence, pretrial would be necessary to protect public order where it is demonstrated that the release of the suspect would likely disturb public order or undermine public peace or security.
The court also said the report returned by the psychiatrist indicated that Mutinda was unfit to stand trial.
"In this case, the court acknowledges the mother's supportive role but also notes that a full-time employment need may limit the ability to provide the supervision the case may require," said the judge.
The court said that Mutinda's family did not provide any details about the care plan to their mentally ill son should he be released to the family.
"There is nothing before the court to indicate the existence of a structured medical psychiatric framework to support Mutinda's continued care in the event of release," the court said.
The judge also said there was no assurance of Mutinda's safety and that of others in the event of release.
The court noted that it would be irresponsible to release Mutinda back to the community hence denied him bond.
Consequently, the court found that the plea taken earlier on was irregular and cannot stand hence proceeded to set the plea aside and ordered the case to be mentioned periodically every month to confirm whether Mutinda is fit to take plea.
Mutinda, a first-year electrical engineering student at MMU, is believed to be behind the murder of Kemunto whose body was discovered on April 2 in a water tank at the rooftop of a hostel within the institution's compound.
Kemunto, a first-year Mass Communications and Computer Science major, disappeared under mysterious circumstances on March 30.
Her decomposing body would later be discovered in a water tank at the university.
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