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Missing Dutch tycoon’s wife applies to be released on bail

Thursday, September 5th, 2019 18:19 | By
Missing Dutch tycoon Tob Cohen with his wife Sarah Wairimu. Photo/PD/FILE

Wife of the missing Dutch businessman Tob Cohen has moved to the High court seeking to be released on bail pending investigation.

Sarah Wairimu, through her lawyer Philip Murgor told Justice Daniel Ogembo that her continued stay in detention was illegal as she was not a flight right.

"We kindly seek the review the process of investigations because the continued detention will make her feel the weight of being in custody and she is a law abiding citizen," Murgor submitted.

Murgor urged the court to release her client on bond terms with conditions that she should not go to her home which is alleged to be crime scene or contact the key witnesses in the case who are said to be employees pending the on-going probe.

Wairimu also wants the court to order the OSC Muthaiga to escort her to her personal based at Nairobi Hospital as she is suffering from back pain and chest pain since she has been sleeping on the floor at at the cells.

Warimu who has been in custody for the last eight days moved to the high court after on Monday Chief magistrate in Kiambu allowed police to continue holding her for 12 working days She also says that the magistrate she misdirected herself in finding that there were sufficient grounds provides by the state to have her remanded in custody pending investigations.

He further wants the court to put the key witnesses who are said to be her employees placed under witness protection pending investigation.

He submitted that a suspect has a right to be arraigned in court and charged and should be held for more than 24 hours.

On Monday magistrate Patricia Gichohi of Kiambu said that DCI had compelling reasons to have Wairimu detained at Muthaiga police station to enable detectives complete investigation into the missing Cohen.

Wairimu was arrested on August 29, after police had picked and interrogated her for the third time over the disappearance of Cohen on July 19, 2019 from their Lower Kabete home, Nairobi.

Cohen has since not been found but police have mounted a massive search for him.

Earlier police said they have no clue on what happened to the golf lover who had an ongoing divorce case in court and had filed assault claims against his wife of 12 years.

In an affidavit by investigating Officer Maxwell Otieno of the DCI homicide section had told the court that Wairimu was arrested on Wednesday at around 7pm following investigations into the disappearance of Cohen, an international businessman.

Otieno said preliminary investigations established Wairimu coached some potential witnesses to give false testimony.

He said the witnesses later recanted their first statement and gave the true version of what transpired.

“We have interrogated Wairimu two times at her home and three times at the DCI headquarters. But all this time we had not treated her as a suspect but as we gathered more information, that is when we arrested her and she is a suspect in the missing of her husband,” Otieno told the court.

DCI says Cohen was apprehensive about his life and shared with some of his close friends threats he said were issued by Wairimu.

Otieno said it is highly probable Cohen was kidnapped from his home by Wairimu and associates to an unknown place and probably murdered.

Otieno told the court he needed time to investigate letters allegedly authored by Cohen and addressed to advocate Judy Thongori, OCS Parklands, OCS Spring Valley and OCPD Gigiri, which were found to be forgeries.

Justice Ogembo however directed the prosecution to respond to the application on Friday 6.

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