Police team traces Jirongo’s last movements, visit city hotel

Former Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo./FILE

Detectives investigating the death of former Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo visited a popular bar and restaurant along Magadi Road in Nairobi. The team said they had traced him to the establishment, where he visited hours before he was involved in an accident kilometres away.

They interrogated staff at the venue on Saturday as part of efforts to trace the people he met before he died. It is believed Jirongo left a restaurant in Karen before driving towards Langata Road and later joined Magadi Road to the hotel, where he stayed for a short while and drove off. Three hours later, he was involved in an accident.

Detectives sought to know who he was with, for how long, what he ate or drank and what he said. The team is also recording statements from individuals he interacted with on the night in question, notably those present during a meeting at Karen Oasis Bar and Restaurant, Nairobi. More than ten people have so far been questioned, but no arrest made.

The hotel management refused to comment on the matter. Jirongo’s death following a road accident on December 13, continues to draw reactions, with some of his family members demanding a probe into the same. He died from blunt force trauma that caused severe injuries to the chest and abdomen, a postmortem conducted on the body showed.

The postmortem also revealed he had injuries to the spine and legs. The family pathologist Joseph Ndung’u and chief government pathologist Dr Johansen Oduor were present at the Lee Funeral Home when the exercise was conducted. Dr Ndung’u said Jirongo’s body had multiple injuries caused by blunt trauma. The body had two fractures on the right hand and fractures on the legs.

“There was a crush injury to the chest with multiple ribs fracture, perforation of the heart with rapture of the major vessels that connect the heart. There was also bleeding to the chest cavity,” he said.

The body had crush injuries to the abdomen and liver, leading to bleeding in the abdominal cavity. There was transection of the spinal cord [a tear within the spinal cord caused by traumatic injury], he added.

“We formed an opinion that he died as a result of crush injuries to the chest, abdomen and spinal injuries due to blunt force trauma,” he said. The results provided police with the way forward in the ongoing probe into the incident.

The DCI said on Tuesday it commenced investigations into the circumstances surrounding the death of Jirongo, who succumbed to injuries sustained in the fatal road accident at Karai, along the Nakuru-Nairobi Highway.

Preliminary investigations reveal that the accident involved Jirongo's motor vehicle and a public service vehicle bus belonging to Climax Company Limited.

The collision occurred at approximately 02:19 am, resulting in a head-on impact that pushed the deceased's vehicle about 25 metres from the point of impact, while the PSV bus came to a stop approximately 50 metres away. In line with its mandate, the DCI deployed a combined team of homicide detectives and forensic experts from the National Forensic Laboratory, who visited the scene, conducted preliminary examinations and secured key exhibits.

During scene documentation, detectives recovered CCTV footage from Eagol Petrol Station, which has been subjected to initial review and analysis. The footage shows that at 02:18:40 am the deceased drove into the petrol station from the Nairobi direction but did not fuel.

At 02:19:10 am, his vehicle stopped at the station's exit and, at 02:19:19 am, made a right turn, driving back towards the Nairobi direction. At 02:19:25 am, the CCTV captured the PSV bus ramming into the deceased's vehicle.

Detectives have interrogated the PSV driver, Tyrus Githinji, who had recorded a statement at the Naivasha Traffic Base. Githinji is out on cash bail pending further investigations into the offence of causing death by dangerous driving. He is required to report to the Naivasha Traffic Base on December 22, for further police action.

Additionally, detectives have interviewed the petrol station's night guard and fuel attendant, both of whom have provided their personal accounts of the events that occurred on the fateful night.

Further analysis of the CCTV footage is underway and additional statements will be recorded from passengers aboard the Climax Company bus and other witnesses. Upon completion, a comprehensive police file will be compiled and forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions for perusal and advice.