Sarah Wairimu pleads not guilty to fresh murder charge in Tob Cohen case
The prosecution had initially sought a new mental health evaluation before allowing her to plead, but the court accepted a report from Mathari Referral Hospital showing she was fit for trial.
Sarah Wairimu has pleaded not guilty to the fresh charge of murdering her husband, Dutch businessman Tob Cohen, in July 2019.
She entered the plea at the Kibera High Court before Justice Diana Kavedza on Wednesday, after the court rejected the prosecution’s request for a new mental health assessment.
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“I therefore decline the application by the prosecution to have the accused person undergo a mental health assessment,” Justice Kavedza said, ruling that Wairimu had already undergone an assessment in 2019, which deemed her fit to stand trial.
The prosecution had initially sought a new mental health evaluation before allowing her to plead, but the court accepted a report from Mathari Referral Hospital showing she was fit for trial.
Following this, Wairimu’s plea was formally taken.
The court also heard that the prosecution intends to oppose her release on bail. They were given 24 hours to file an affidavit in support of their application, with the defence given 12 hours to respond.
Each party will have 20 minutes to submit arguments on the bail application during the hearing set for Monday, February 3, at 11 a.m.
Until then, Wairimu will remain in custody at Lang’ata Women’s Prison.
She was arrested on Thursday, January 23, and initially detained at Kilimani Police Station. Her lawyers allege that the police misled her, convincing her to pick up some personal items from the station before arresting her.
She was arraigned on Friday but did not take a plea due to the mental health assessment dispute.
The Director of Public Prosecutions had applied for a new mental health evaluation, but Wairimu’s lawyer, Conrad Maloba, contested the request, arguing that the earlier assessment should suffice.
Justice Kavedza directed that Wairimu remains in custody until the bail hearing on Monday.
Wairimu and her co-accused, Peter Karanja, were charged with the murder of Tob Cohen between July 19 and July 20, 2019. Both denied the charges when they appeared before Justice Stella Mutuku and were granted a cash bail of Sh2 million each.
However, Karanja was later rearrested and subsequently brought before a court in Naivasha.
Wairimu has consistently denied any involvement in the murder, asserting in 2020 that Cohen was killed and his body disposed of in a septic tank at their home while she was in police custody.
She further claimed that those responsible were individuals with connections, receiving protection from certain officers at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
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