Key witness in Monica’s murder case goes ‘Tibim’ after gaining freedom

 

A smiling Brian Kassaine chanted ‘Tibim’ while raising his fist outside Court 4 at the Kiambu Law Courts after he was freed amid an ongoing probe into the murder of Monica Kimani.

A few minutes earlier, he received hugs from his relatives who were equally excited to have their son back, after 13 days in police custody.

Some broke into tears as they watched from a distance as he was being escorted to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations headquarters for processing.

Kassaine was freed – though conditionally – as police continue with investigations following the killing of Monica.

He will now be required to report to the DCI every Thursday for the next two months while he has 48 hours to surrender his passport.

In an interview with K24 outside the DCI headquarters, Kassaine said, “it has been a rough 13 days in custody. I am just happy to be free and be at liberty.”

– Is Kassaine still a suspect or State witness? –

According to detectives, Kassaine gave crucial information that may help in building a “watertight case” against his neighbours, TV journalist Jacque Maribe and her fiancé Joseph Irungu alias Jowie.

It is Kassaine’s gun that Jowie, the prime suspect in the murder, used to shoot himself in an apparent suicide attempt on the fateful night.

Jowie would later call him to “secure the gun.”

“The case is still under active probe,” Investigating Officer Maxwell Otieno told court on Thursday.

His phone, which was confiscated by police is still being subjected to forensic examination.

According to police, Jowie had asked for paraffin from Kassaine “to burn some items.” on the night of September 20 at around 1am.

“Just allow us to conclude investigations and whether he faces different charges over the gun or not, it will be decided,” a detective privy to the ongoing probe told Capital FM News.

The firearm that Kassaine secured had 28 live bullets. He also took one spent cartridge from the floor.

“The cartridge was at the entrance to the walk-in closet adjacent to the master bedroom on the upper floor of the house,” Otieno, in his affidavit revealed.

Jowie was later rushed to various hospitals by Maribe and Kassaine among others.

Their last stop was Kijabe mission hospital, more than 60 kilometres from the capital city.

Police are yet to establish who had accompanied Jowie from Kimani’s apartment as captured by CCTV images off Dennis Pritt Road as he headed to Lang’ata.

Multiple witnesses have since affirmed to detectives that Jowie was at Monica’s apartment in Kilimani on the night she was killed.

Detectives have also established that Jowie, who was wearing a kanzu, used an ID card belonging to a security guard to gain entry to the apartments at Lamuria Gardens.

The guard who has since been questioned said his ID card went missing at a construction site a few days before Monica was killed.

Interestingly, the ID was used at Lamuria Gardens, some eight kilometres away.

Monica was found in a bathtub at her apartment in Lamuria Gardens in Kilimani, with her throat slit.

Her hands and legs were also tied when the body was discovered by her brother who had failed to reach her on phone and decided to visit the house.

The deceased was murdered on the day she arrived in the country from Juba, where she operated their family business and was scheduled to travel to Dubai to meet her South Sudanese fiancée, with whom they were reportedly planning a wedding.

Jowie and Maribe were arraigned in court on Tuesday and remanded until Monday when they will plead to murder charges. 


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