Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) have released new details in the gruesome murder of Daniel Mwangi on January 1, 2021.
Stephen Wang’ondu, Mwangi’s father, is accused of paying Eddy Kariuki, Raphael Wachira, Geoffrey Warutumo, and James Mwangi, a driver, to kill his son.
DCI officers revealed that Wang’ondu made a Ksh100,000 down payment to have his son killed.
Stephen Wang’ondu, who is accused of hiring a gang to kill his son, in a Nyeri court on Tuesday, March 2, 2021. |Photo| Courtesy|
An affidavit submitted at the Nyeri High Court by DCI officer Joyce Maluki detailed the roles played by each of the five perpetrators.
The driver was mandated with putting together a team and an elaborate plan to murder Mwangi on the father’s instruction.
“Evidence gathered so far indicates that the first accused (father) contacted the second accused (driver) informing him that he had a job he wanted done and that he needed to get persons who could eliminate his son,” the documents read in part.
The sleuths detailed that the driver reached out to Warutumo who in turn contacted Wachira and Kariuki.
The four then convened at a popular local restaurant in Nyeri Town on the night of December 31, 2020, where they finalised their plot.
DCI states that the driver then went to a hardware in Mweiga Town where he purchased a metal rod that would later be used in the killing.
On the morning of January 1, 2020, Mwangi was found soaked in his blood. A post mortem conducted on the body indicated that he suffered multiple stab wounds and cuts.
For the job, they had been paid Ksh100,000 through the driver. He had promised to pay them Ksh160,000 for the job.
Detectives revealed that Wang’ondu had paid the driver Ksh20,000 forehand to put together the gang and ferry them to Nyeri for the job.
Though it is yet to be determined how much each of the suspects pocketed, one of them, Kariuki, is said to have built a two-room house from the payment.
Another one, Wachira, reportedly purchased household items with the money, including a subwoofer.
DCI officers in tracking phone records placed Wachira and Kariuki at the crime scene thus attaching them to the murder.
The driver was arrested in Githurai on February 20, after he had relocated.
Kariuki and Warutumo were arrested in Embu Town on February 21 while Wachira was arrested in his Pipeline hideout, Nairobi on February 25.
Officer Maluki asked the court to deny the suspects bail, arguing that they are a flight risk, and that, Wang’ondu could tamper with witnesses.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecution last week advised that the suspects be held in different cells.
DCI detectives are also looking at an insurance fraud claim, after the Nyeri tycoon initiated an insurance claim barely a month after his son’s burial.
The suspects will appear in court on March 9 pending the determination of their bond hearing.
