Murder for hire: How a DJ, boda boda riders orchestrated Molo activist’s murder for Sh300,000 payout

Nakuru-based activist Raymond Otieno.

By Lucy Mumbi
Wednesday, February 26, 2025

The suspects are now in custody as detectives intensify efforts to track down more individuals, including those suspected of financing the killing.

A carefully orchestrated murder plot, a fugitive escape to Tanzania, and a hunt for shadowy financiers—this is the chilling reality surrounding the killing of Molo activist Richard Raymond Omollo Otieno.

Investigators now point to Peter Oketch, alias DJ I0, as the suspected mastermind behind the assassination.

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Police have identified Oketch as the lead suspect in Omollo’s murder, with CCTV footage allegedly capturing him and two accomplices planning the ambush before fleeing to Tanzania.

The suspects are now in custody as detectives intensify efforts to track down more individuals, including those suspected of financing the killing.

According to investigators, Oketch was hired by an unidentified individual to execute the murder. He then recruited other suspects, including boda boda operators and hawkers, to carry out the attack.

The group was allegedly promised Sh300,000 for their role in the crime.

Lead investigator Inspector Patrick Wachira, in an affidavit seeking more time for investigations, stated that Oketch enlisted Joseph Kihara Kariuki and Evans Aseka. The two were arrested alongside Oketch in Molo town on February 23. CCTV footage reportedly shows the trio strategising before launching the deadly attack on Omollo.

"The first respondent (Peter Oketch) was the one who was given the hit man contract by both the financiers and beneficiaries of this heinous act and thereafter recruited the second, third respondents among other suspects who are not before this court," Wachira said.

Further investigations revealed that a blogger linked to the financier was involved in identifying the target and directing the assassins to Omollo.

Reports indicate that the suspects were initially given Sh3,000 each, followed by an additional Sh5,000, bringing the total payout to Sh8,000 per participant in the six-member team.

After the murder, the suspects allegedly fled to Tanzania, where they were sheltered by extended family members before returning to Kenya. Following their arrest, police sought to detain them for 21 days to finalise investigations, pursue additional suspects, and identify the financiers and beneficiaries still at large.

Geolocation data confirmed that the suspects were at the same location as Omollo on January 18, the day he was attacked and killed in Elburgon. Prosecutors have disclosed that a multi-agency task force is actively pursuing other suspects.

Police have requested additional time to conduct forensic investigations, including DNA collection, identification parades, and the recording of witness statements.

"The respondents were geolocated at the same location together with the victim the day he was attacked and murdered in Elburgon on January 18. Thereafter, the respondents were paid by others not before this court for the hitman job which was shared as proceeds of crime, with one of the respondents' number being registered with another identity card," Wachira said.

So far, a total of nine individuals have been arrested in connection with the killing. Besides the cash payment, investigators revealed that the assassins had also been promised a parcel of land as a reward for their role in the crime.