Killer matatu driver detained pending pre bail report
A Nairobi court Thursday ordered the continued detention of a matatu driver accused of causing a fatal road crash along Enterprise Road that claimed four lives, pending the preparation of a pre-bail report.
Principal Magistrate Paul Mutai directed that Sammy Murigi Maina remain in custody until September 24, when the court will consider the pre-bail report and deliver its ruling on his bail application.
The court also ordered that the accused be accorded necessary medical treatment while in remand.
Maina was charged with three counts of causing death by dangerous driving, two counts of driving without due care and attention, and one count of driving an unroadworthy motor vehicle, contrary to the Traffic Act.
According to the prosecution, the accident occurred on June 3, 2026, at about 8 p.m. when Maina was driving an Isuzu minibus, registration number KDU 887C, belonging to Risen Sacco along Enterprise Road opposite KCB Bank in Nairobi.
The prosecution alleges that he lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a roundabout, causing it to hit a curb, overturn and land across the road.
Three passengers Charles Brandy Wahome, Tamia Kalkeye Nyambura and Edwin Kago died at the scene, while Eugene Ongundi and Dominic Mulwa sustained injuries.
A fourth victim later succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash.
Court documents further state that the vehicle had several defects, including an obstructed emergency exit, raised passenger seats fitted with speakers, unsecured power inverters in the driver’s cabin, tinted reflective windows and a modified dashboard that allegedly obstructed the driver’s view.
The prosecution opposed the driver’s release on bail, arguing that although bail is a constitutional right, it is not absolute where compelling reasons exist.
State counsel told the court that the accused was apprehended through a warrant after allegedly evading arrest and that his place of residence remained uncertain, making him a flight risk.
The prosecution also indicated that additional charges could be preferred.
Lawyer S.K. Waweru, the victims’ families, supported the prosecution’s application, saying the accused had allegedly been in hiding since the June crash.
He told the court that the investigating officer encountered difficulties tracing the driver and alleged that witnesses, many of whom are fare-paying passengers from Komarock, could be vulnerable to interference if the accused were released.
The defence urged the court to grant bail, maintaining that Maina had never been summoned by police and had voluntarily presented himself at the police station after learning of the proceedings through media reports.
Defence counsel Samuel Gioche told the court that the 31-year-old matatu driver had been recovering from injuries sustained in the crash while staying with relatives in Zimmerman and ordinarily lives with his mother in Kayole Junction.
The defence denied claims that he had fled to Malindi or Machakos and argued that the case concerns a traffic offence rather than murder.
Speaking outside the courtroom, Waweru described the arraignment of the driver as an important step toward accountability in the matatu sector, saying the victims’ families had waited more than three months for the suspect to be brought before the court.
The case will be mentioned on September 24, 2026 for the presentation of the pre-bail report and the court’s ruling on bail.
