SSU officers released on personal Sh0.5m bond

Eight police officers from the disbanded Special Service Unit (SSU), who had been in custody with the disappearance of two Indians and their Kenyan taxi driver have been released on a Sh500,000 personal bond.

Another officer, Francis Ndonye had been released on November 10 on the same terms.

The nine were released on a free bond as the Internal Affairs Unit linked a National Intelligence Service (NIS) and a senior Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officers to the abduction of two Indian nationals and their taxi driver.

The two were to be arrested on Wednesday and be arraigned together with four Special Service Unit (SSU) officers but were said to have gone underground.

The investigators from the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) had summoned the officers through their commanders but the summonses were ignored. Sources however said the NIS officer had recorded his statement with the detectives where he denied having been involved.

Delivering  the ruling on the release of the nine , Kahawa Law courts chief magistrate Diana Mochache, directed the officers not to interfere with witnesses and to avail themselves to investigators whenever needed failure to which their bond terms would  be canceled.

Mochache released Chief Inspector  Peter Muthee, John Kamau, Joseph Mbugua, Joseph Mbaya, David Kipsoi, Stephen Mutunda, Paul Muriithi, and Simon Gikonyo who have been in police custody for almost 40  days  on a personal bond.

She also directed the prosecution and defence teams to  agree on a date when the DNA samples of the nine officers would  be taken at the Government Chemist.

In her ruling the magistrate  varied her earlier order that the officers be escorted to National Forensic Laboratory for DNA.