In a significant development in the murder case of Kasipul MP Charles Were, the JKIA Law Courts on Friday dismissed an application challenging its jurisdiction. The ruling marks a setback for five key suspects, including the late MP’s bodyguard, driver, and a neighbour from his rural home, who had sought to have the case transferred to Milimani or Kibra Law Courts.
Delivering the ruling, Magistrate Irene Gichobi said there was no legal basis to bar the JKIA court from handling the matter at this stage, noting that the suspects remain under active investigation. “The application by the respondents lacks merit and the same is dismissed,” she ruled.
The suspects had claimed that the alleged crime took place outside the JKIA court’s jurisdiction. However, the magistrate clarified that the case is still in its early investigative phase and the court had only been approached to issue custodial detention orders, not to try the accused.
Magistrate Gichobi emphasized that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) was within its mandate to seek 30 more days to detain the suspects as investigations continue into the high-profile murder that has gripped the nation.
This decision paves the way for the court to hear the DCI’s formal application for custodial detention. Meanwhile, attention remains focused on businessman Philip Aroko, also linked to the case, who has been detained for seven days amid allegations he financed the assassination plot.
The case continues to unfold, with Kenyans closely monitoring developments surrounding the shocking murder of MP Charles Were.
