Police believe the main suspect in the killing of a woman in an upscale city apartment may have attempted suicide.
Detectives are investigating whether the wound in Joseph Kuria Irungu’s chest was self-inflicted after ruling out his initial claim that he had been shot by assailants.
Police say from what they have gathered, Irungu may have tried to commit suicide on September 20 by shooting himself in the left side of the chest in his fiancé TV journalist Jacque Maribe’s house.
Maribe’s house-help has reportedly told police she heard a bang that night.
Detectives probe Maribe lover’s ‘suicide attempt’: Officers have ruled out Irungu’s claim that he was shot outside the house. https://t.co/6hwX7wlY9S
— Breaking News (@News_Kenya) October 1, 2018
Maribe and Irungu had told police they were attacked inside the house but later changed the explanation, saying the said attack happened outside.
Detectives believe the shooting took place in a toilet in the house and that Irungu may have used a piece of cloth to cover the pistol’s nozzle to muffle the sound.
The investigators say a piece of cloth that was not destroyed as Irungu allegedly burnt some items in the compound in which he lived with Maribe is crucial evidence that links him to the scene of crime.
They say Irungu’s conduct on the nights of September 19 and 20 raise questions about his possible role in the murder of Monica Kimani in her apartment off Dennis Pritt Road.
Police sources said besides inconsistent accounts given by Irungu and Maribe, the testimony of their house-help led to their detention.
On September 19, a man dressed in a kanzu visited Monica in her house in Lamuria Apartments. The next day in the afternoon, the 28-year-old woman’s body was found in a bathtub, with her throat slit.
The man in a kanzu has since been identified by witnesses as Irungu. He was positively identified by four witnesses last Tuesday at a police parade as the last man who was seen walking out of Monica’s house.
Investigators claim from Monica’s house, Irungu drove, still dressed in the blood-stained Kanzu, to the house in Langata’s Royal Park estate where Maribe lives.
He took a shower, changed clothes and grabbed the bloodstained clothing alongside some items detectives are yet to establish.
Carrying a matchbox and paraffin, Irungu is then said to have walked out of the house to a far corner within the compound, and burnt the items.
Maribe’s house-help, who was in the house, reportedly corroborated this account during her interrogation. Police say a piece of the kanzu that did not burn completely was recovered from the scene.
They have confirmed that it is the same garb Irungu wore on the night he visited Monica. It is not clear what else Irungu, popularly known as Jowi, burnt, but detectives collected the ashes for further analysis.
After burning the items, Irungu then drove to a club in Westlands where Maribe was. Maribe had apparently on that Wednesday night left her workplace and driven to the club.
Witnesses said Irungu arrived at the club at about 2.30am in the company of about seven men. He picked Maribe and they went home early on September 20.
Police believe Irungu confided to Maribe what had happened the previous night.
This is the reason they decided to arrest her. She was detained at Gigiri police station after she was interrogated for three days. Maribe was taken back to DCI headquarters where she was being grilled for the fourth day yesterday ahead of her possible arraignment.
[Video] Detectives probe Jackie Maribe lover’s ‘suicide attempt’: Joseph Irungu, Jackie Maribe’s fiance is a suspect in the murder of Monica Kimani who was murdered in her home. Jackie Maribe has been arreste.. https://t.co/MQfIoUZJe9
— Breaking News (@News_Kenya) October 1, 2018