A prisons officer dismissed claims that they have been denying murder suspect Kevin Kang’ethe access to contacts to get new counsel.
Appearing before Milimani Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina on Friday, Superintendent of Prisons in charge of documentation Martin Onyango gave a timeline of the events from February 14, when Kang’ethe was first detained at the Industrial Area Remand and Allocation Centre.
He said after arrival at the prison, the US fugitive was allocated to block K26 for accomodations.
This is where high-risk suspects and those charged with capital crimes are detained.
Kang’ethe was then informed of his rights under custody, including Article 49(1)(c) of the Constitution which states that;
“An arrested person has the right to communicate with an advocate, and other persons whose assistance is necessary,” he said.
Kang’ethe then personally gave four contacts that he wished to talk to while in the detention location.
They belonged to his attorneys including David Muthama, Anthony Kago and Mohamed Ahmed.
The Prison Superintendent told the court that it is procedural for a detainee to be allocated two officers during the day.
These being an Inspector and a Corporal who are detailed to look after him in the block and to escort him wherever he would like to go.
There was no exception in Kang’ethe’s case.
“During the nights, six officers are allocated to guard Kang’ethe,” he added.
Onyango stated that in case any requests for escorts including to the documentation room, Kang’ethe is expected to notify the inspector and corporal.
The court heard that since the suspect’s arrival to Industrial Area, he has visited Onyango’s office severally for access to the welfare phone to contact his lawyers and relatives.
“He usually comes, I usher him in, and give him one of the two welfare phones to contact the persons without interaction or coercion,” he said.
Two days after his arrival on February 16, Kang’ethe made two calls at 3:30pm.
On February 21, he made calls to eight contacts between 9:30am and 10:30am while on February 22 at 8:40 am, he made two calls to his contacts.
Onyango further said on February 28, between 10 am to 10:30am, Kang’ethe contacted two people.
He presented a document with the data obtained from Safaricom through the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) office dated February 14, and February 28.
Further, he said on February 22, Kang’ethe was visited by Inspector Patrick Wachira from DCI Homicide Department.
He brought along seven inventory documents to supply to Kang’ethe, which the prison officer signed as received.
The court heard that throughout his stay at the prison, Kang’ethe never complained about denial of access to a phone or his contacts.
“He has never complained to me. He is very humble and says thank you very much sir after he has contacted his people,” Onyango said.
Kang’ethe however denied the statement, maintaining his claims that he has been denied access to contacts and that he feels like he is out of touch with his people.
He also claimed that he never provided the four contacts in question, saying those were given to the prison officers his attorneys before the relationship between them and him was ended.
On the Safaricom data of the phone calls, Kang’ethe stated that he had barely talked in the calls noting that some showed the calls period as zero (0) minutes.
“I am shocked about this,” he stated in regard to Onyango’s statement.
“The level of frustration I have had, I’ve not been able to get in touch with anyone.”
He also said his other lawyer, John Ndegwa had been denied access to him when he tried to visit.
In response, Onyango branded Kang’ethe a liar, adding that on Thursday at noon, two superior prison officers visited him.
They had a conversation with Kang’ethe and murder convict Joseph “Jowie” Irungu with the aim of knowing if they were facing any problems with and at the institution.
According to the officer, the fugitive’s complaint was only about toiletries, soap and things he could use while in prison.
Onyango said he was directed to provide the same, which he did.
“He had a chance to state his complains but did not say anything about the phone calls,” he added.
But Kang’ethe said, the toiletries was a callously question and the officer in charge only wanted to check on them because he never did before.
The prosecution told the court that it needed directions on how the matter will proceed.
They requested for a further mention date on whether Kang’ethe will have a counsel so that they can proceed on the issue of bail/bond.
Magistrate Onyina directed Kang’ethe to liaise with the DCI and police commanders on the issue of Ndegwa’s visitation.
He also ordered that he be provided access to his contacts to help get new counsel.
The mention date has been set for March 13, 2024.
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