Former Cabinet Minister Raphael Tuju at Kibera law courts/LEAH MUKANGAIFormer Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju’s case over allegations that he gave false information about an alleged abduction took a new turn after a police officer who reportedly received his complaint told the court she was “scared” after discovering her name had been included in the charge sheet.
Chief Inspector Purity Kobia, who was attached to Karen Police Station at the time, told the court she did not understand why she had been listed in the charge sheet.
“I don’t know how my name came there. I didn’t write it, and even I got scared when I saw my name on the charge sheet,” Kobia told the court.
The officer was testifying as a prosecution witness in the case involving Tuju, who is facing allegations of giving false information concerning an alleged abduction in March this year.
Kobia told the court that she had been instructed by the OCPD to alert hotels and malls about a security threat and advise their management to remain vigilant.
She said she visited several establishments for the purpose and informed their security managers before proceeding to Etim Sidai, where Tuju was staying.
At Etim Sidai, Kobia said she spoke to the security officer, who was also the manager, and briefed him about the information she had received.
She said that as they were preparing to leave, Tuju approached them and greeted them before informing them that he intended to go to the police station because he had a report to make.
Kobia said she asked Tuju what the report was about, prompting him to recount an incident he said had occurred the previous day.
“I asked him what kind of report. He told us how the previous day, Friday, March 20, 2026, as he was coming from his hotel in Etim Sidai, there was a white Land Cruiser which trailed him and he saw it,” she told the court.
Kobia said Tuju told her that he had decided to stop at Dari after noticing several police officers in the area.
She then instructed a Sergeant to take Tuju’s details and record his report.
The officer said an occurrence book (OB) entry was subsequently made after Tuju gave the report.
The court further heard that the OCS was informed later on by her deputy that Tuju’s vehicle had been found abandoned.
She said the deputy OCS told her that police had conducted a search and established that the vehicle was registered to the former CS.
Kobia testified that she later went to the scene alongside her deputy, who was the duty officer then, where they found the vehicle with its hazard lights on, with no one.
She said she attempted to contact Tuju, but his phone number was not going through.
"So we called his son, Emmanuel Tuju; he told me he was in the church. I asked him whether he knew the whereabouts of his father; he said he hasn't seen him for one or two weeks," she submitted.
During cross-examination, the officer maintained that it was part of her duty to receive reports made by members of the public and have them recorded before investigations were undertaken.
She clarified, however, that she could not establish whether Tuju’s report was true or false because she was not present when the alleged incident occurred.
“I don’t know if he was lying or not,” she said when asked whether she thought Tuju had lied.
When asked about the charge sheet, she reiterated that she had not prepared it and questioned how her name came to be included.
The Prosecution lined up three witnesses in the case for the day.
The matter came up for hearing before Chief Magistrate Stella Atambo, with the prosecution presenting evidence on the report made by Tuju and the subsequent police response.
Tuju faces charges arising from the alleged false abduction report. He has denied the allegations.
