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Emotions ran high, as tears freely flowed during the burial of lawyer Paul Gicheru at Kwa Nguku area in Bahati, Nakuru County.

Mourners including judges, lawyers and friends joined the family in celebrating the life of the 49-year-old who died a week ago, with speakers heaping praises on the well-lived – but short – life of Gicheru.

In an emotional tribute, his wife Ruth Nyambura told mourners that her husband was a great family man as well as a man of the people in the society.

She revealed that before his demise at home, he held her hand saying nothing would separate them.

“We have shared 23 years of our life together and I thank God for that, our years were filled with love, laughter, tears, blessings, and fulfilment,” said Nyambura.

She described Gicheru as a loving father to the children saying he instilled discipline and gave courage adding that his loss is hard to accept and that he will be greatly missed.

“There are wounds that are hard to heal, they say time heals the wound, but with you gone time will instead teach us the pain of not having you,” she added.

Gicheru’s sons celebrated their father as a man of courage and love saying he was slow to anger and always gave people numerous chances to defend themselves.

Gicheru’s mother Josephine Wambui, in a tribute read by Esther Wairimu, said, “You lived a life of selfless service, helping others before you even thought about yourself without expecting anything in return, we can only strive to replicate the exemplary life you lived”. She described her son, as a precious gift from God saying he was everything a mother would ever wish for.

Worked together

In his tribute, Supreme Court Judge Mohammed Ibrahim said Gicheru was his long-time friend, revealing that they worked together as advocates in Eldoret adding that his death is a great loss.

The judge disclosed that Gicheru was his lawyer who until his demise was acting for him in many quarters.

“He went to ICC to clear his name, I have so much respect for that court but I know he was innocent,” said Mohammed.

Justice Francis Tuiyott of the Court of Appeal in his tribute described Gicheru as a humble man and a generous soul but as a good friend who was present at every given time.

Veteran lawyer John Khaminwa who was his lawyer, said Gicheru had a vast knowledge of the law, was disciplined, and a hard worker and thus his death is a huge loss to the legal profession in the country.

Khaminwa added that Gicheru had shown openly that he loved his family by giving the children quality education abroad.

“Death is devastating and when it occurs let us be courageous and united as a family, Gicheru was a believer in a united family, we want to see that,” said Khaminwa.

He said his death caused shock across the globe adding that despite controversies that came around, he was a good man, stating that he was not a cheat and a murderer.

“He was a man committed to his life and job and has made Kenya better. He was a genuine friend to my family and a great son of Kenya,” he added.

Lawyer Katwa Kigen said it saddened him to lose Gicheru who was very intelligent and a strategic man who stopped at nothing to ensure he achieved his visions.

His death brings an end to a twist in a decade-long legal journey at the International Criminal Court (ICC) punctuated by collapsed trials, and disappearing witnesses with his close friend Mureithi Kang’ara seeking to have the matter closed.

Steve Mburu on his part said the cases against Gicheru were a fabrication and that his travel to The Hague was one of the ways to clear his name and thus asked Kenyans not to politicise the matter.

Gicheru and another Kenyan lawyer, Philip Kipkoech Bett, had been indicted by the ICC prosecution team, and warrants of arrest were issued against them in 2015 for offences against the administration of justice.

Intimidating witnesses

The two were alleged to have corruptly influenced prosecution witnesses to frustrate the case against President William Ruto Ruto and radio presenter Joshua Arap Sang.

Prosecutors accused the duo of bribing and intimidating witnesses to prevent them from testifying against Ruto over his role in post-election violence in Kenya in 2007/08.

The court had heard that Gicheru’s actions, from 2013 to 2015, had caused four vital witnesses to recant their testimony with at least eight witnesses revealing they had been threatened and feared for their lives.

He, however, caused a sensation in the country in 2020 when he flew to Amsterdam to present himself at The Hague, after years of refusing to stand trial and resisting the court’s efforts to have him extradited.

The lawyer had since then been on trial in The Hague where on February 1, 2021, he was released from ICC custody and travelled back to Kenya after pleading not guilty and declining to testify.