The prime suspect in the bizarre murder of a Nyeri-based shop attendant, Joy Kanini in June this year, has denied the charge of murder.
The 25-year-old accused, John Muriithi Nderitu alias Tizo alias Johnte, appeared virtually before Justice Joyce Mkambe of the Kerugoya Law court where he was charged with the offence of murder contrary to Section 203 of the Penal Code.
According to the charge sheet, Muriithi committed the offence between June 9 and June 11, this year in Ngangarithi in Nyeri town.
He denied the offence.
The murder incident hit the headlines when the torso of the deceased was discovered on the morning of June 11 within Ngangarithi Estate in Nyeri town.
The torso, which did not have limbs, a neck and a head, had been stuffed in a sack and had been placed outside the fence of Muriithi’s home.
According to records at the Nyeri Central Police Station, Muriithi recorded a missing person report on the same day that the body was discovered and he had contacted Kanini’s parents to inform them that their daughter was missing.
He had thereafter accompanied Kanini’s parents to the police station to help trace their missing daughter before fleeing the police station.
An intensive search by detectives and members of Kanini’s family on June 17 led to the discovery of the missing limbs in a six-foot pit latrine in Muriithi’s homestead. A post-mortem conducted at the Nyeri County Referral funeral home on that day established that Kanini died from excessive bleeding.
After evading police for more than a month, Muriithi was arrested by DCI officers on July 10, along the Nanyuki-Isiolo road while on the run. He is said to have been fleeing to Uganda.
He was arraigned before Nyeri Senior Resident Magistrate Mary Gituma on July 13 where the court granted detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations 21 days to complete their investigations.
After interrogation, Muriithi led the detectives to a pit latrine in Kandara leading to the recovery of the deceased missing head on July14.
On Thursday (August 20), State Prosecutor, Ms Hellen Mutellah told the court that the suspect had undergone a mental assessment at the Mukurweini hospital on July 29 which confirmed that he was fit to stand trial.
“We had already informed the court that the accused person had undergone a mental assessment by Dr Yvonne Njeri, a consultant at the Mukurwe-ini hospital,”said Mutellah.
Defence Counsel, Wambui Mwai, asked that the accused be admitted to reasonable bond terms.
However, Justice Joyce Mkambe ruled that a pre-bail report be filed to allow the court to determine his suitability to be released on bond or bail.
Muriithi will be remanded at the King’ong’o maximum prison until September 7, when the case will be mentioned.
By Wangari Mwangi and Sharon Nashipae
