Man acquitted of murder after court finds gaps in investigation

A man accused of murder has been acquitted after the prosecution failed to call crucial witnesses and conducted what the judge termed a “superficial” investigation.

The prosecution alleged that the accused, Jeff Ogitare Mecheo Nyangoe, also operated under the alias Kevin Ombura Nyangoya.

He was acquitted after the court found that the state had failed to link him to the discovery made in January 2021.

The prosecution alleged that Mecheo acted jointly with others in the murder of John Harrison Njoroge Katto on the night of January 2, 2021, at Kihara sublocation in Nyandarua County, in a case linked to a family land dispute.

The court heard that Katto’s adult children became concerned when they were unable to reach him by telephone.

One son, accompanied by the deceased’s grandson Michael Waruhiu, later broke into the home, which had been locked from the outside.

Inside, they found the victim’s body, and several items were reported missing.

One of the central issues in the trial was the identity of the accused.

While he identified himself in court as Jeff Ogitare Mecheo Nyangoe, the prosecution alleged that he had used his brother’s identity card to gain employment with the victim.

“The accused, Jeff Ogitare, was connected to the crime through M-Pesa statements from the deceased’s phone,” court documents show.

Mecheo denied any involvement and said he had no knowledge of the victim.

Justice Kiarie Waweru Kiarie of the High Court in Nyandarua ruled that the prosecution had not proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

The court questioned the absence of two key individuals: Waruhiu and Nyangoya, whose identity card the accused was alleged to have used.

“There was no attempt by the prosecution to prove whether this was his true identity,” the judge stated.

“The prosecution did not demonstrate that the accused was ever an employee of the deceased.”

The judge noted that the lead investigator, Corporal Jackson Mbithi, said during cross-examination that the deceased died in a family land dispute.

“He should have investigated Michael Waruhiu,” Justice Kiarie said.

In his ruling, Justice Kiarie said the case against Mecheo had collapsed.

“After reviewing all the evidence, I conclude that the prosecution has not proven the case of murder against the accused. Consequently, he is acquitted of murder and should be released unless there are other lawful reasons for detention.”