Citizen TV Journalist Jacque Maribe, a suspect in the murder of businesswoman Monica Kimani in Nairobi, will stay in police cells longer, a Kiambu court has ruled.
Kiambu Principal Magistrate Justus Kituku on Monday allowed police to hold Mr Maribe for 10 more days as they investigate the case.
Detectives brought Ms Maribe to court at 8.30am Monday and locked her up at the cells as she waited for her date with destiny.
She was taken to court a few minutes after 9am, with the state prosecution making an application to extend her lock-up as they investigate the murder that has also seen the arrest and detention of her fiancé Joseph Kuria Irungu.
The prosecutors asked Kiambu Principal Magistrate Justus Kituku to allow police to detain her for another 14 days at Gigiri Police Station in the capital Nairobi.
They cited ballistic examination of the samples that they took from the suspect’s house and a pending DNA test among other reasons to back up their request.
If set free, they told the magistrate, Ms Maribe is likely to interfere with the ongoing investigations.
Ms Maribe arrives for her court date on October 1, 2018. PHOTO | ERIC WAINAINA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
But her lawyer Katwa Kigen opposed the request, saying the “time requested for is unreasonable”.
The reasons given by the prosecution, Mr Kigen said, were not compelling.
Mr Kigen also decried the conditions under which Ms Maribe was held over the weekend, saying she was intimidated and mocked by fellow inmates.
If the court decides to detain the journalist for more days, he said, the magistrate should ensure her rights as a suspect are not violated.
The news anchor, who broke the news of Ms Kimani’s death on TV, was arrested on Saturday, days after she was interrogated by detectives over case.
Her fiancé Irungu, the main suspect in the murder, was last week presented before Kiambu Senior Resident Magistrate Stella Atambo who allowed police to detain him for 10 more days as they investigate the case.
Ms Maribe with her lawyer Katwa Kigen appear before Kiambu Principal Magistrate Justus Kituku. PHOTO | ERIC WAINAINA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Ms Kimani’s body was found in a bathtub at her house in Kilimani, Nairobi, with the throat slit and hands tied at the back.
Mr Irungu, Ms Maribe, and their mutual friend Brian Kassaine, in whose house detectives found a gun hidden in the ceiling, are the suspects in police custody so far.
Mr Kassaine is also expected in court this morning.