Babu Owino Celebrates Getting Nuru Okanga Off the Hook in Court Case Involving Ruto

A Nairobi court has acquitted political activist Nuru Okanga Maloba of all cybercrime charges.

The ruling was delivered on Tuesday, 20 January 2026, marking the end of a legal battle involving President William Ruto.

The Verdict

Magistrate Rose Ndombi ruled that the prosecution failed to provide enough evidence. The state had accused Okanga of a cybercrime attack against the President.

However, the court found that investigators did not prove Okanga created or shared the content in question.

The magistrate noted the video at the heart of the case contained "serious and potentially alarming claims."

Despite this, the state could not demonstrate that the video was capable of inciting violence or public disorder. The court concluded that the evidence presented amounted to "mere suspicion" rather than actual proof.

The Defence and Political Context

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino represented Okanga as his lawyer. Owino, who is a 2027 Nairobi governorship aspirant, celebrated the victory on social media. "Today, justice spoke. After a long and exhausting year in court, Nuru Okanga walked free when the Honourable Magistrate ruled that the prosecution failed to present sufficient evidence,” Babu Owino wrote.

WATCH: Babu Owino defends his client Nuru Okanga in court overdefamation allegations

He described the moment as the "saving of a life" and a rescue from the "jaws of prison.”

Okanga also expressed his gratitude to God and his legal team. He noted that his arrest followed a suit by President William Ruto in 2023. Okanga claimed that throughout the entire process, the President never appeared in court.

“After all the process, the court found that I was wronged. I lost time, but truth has won. I thank my lawyer Babu Owino, the Acting Nairobi Governor, and all Kenyans who prayed for me. No one is above the law,” he posted.

Gaps in the Investigation

The trial revealed significant gaps in the prosecution's case. One DCI officer testified that he arrested Okanga at a barbershop in June 2024. However, during cross-examination, several failures were brought to light:

• No court order was obtained to monitor Okanga or conduct searches.

• No electronic devices were seized from the accused.

• No digital forensic analysis was performed to link Okanga to the social media accounts.

• The accounts involved were identified as "Riba News" and "Siasa TV KE Backup" on TikTok.

For long, Okanga had been calling on President Ruto, as the main complainant in his case, to appear in court and testify against him.