Late Nyeri Governor Gakuru inquest put off to trace witness
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) has requested for more time to trace a key foreign witness in the inquest into the death of former Nyeri Governor Wahome Gakuru.
The governor perished in a road accident on November 7, 2017.
Senior Assistant DPP Peter Mailanyi sought more time before Nyeri Chief Magistrate Wendy Kagendo to interview Sascha Ebel, who inspected the late governor’s Mercedes Benz E250.
Mailanyi said Ebel, who works for the dealers of Mercedes Benz, DT Dobie, in Germany, was yesterday expected to table the assessment report of the ill-fated vehicle in which Gakuru was travelling when the accident occurred.
Gakuru died when his vehicle, with four occupants on board including his personal assistant Albert Gakuru and bodyguard Ahmed Abdi, hit a guardrail that tore into it.
In his application, Mailanyi said the office of the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had not got the witness to appear in court to testify as he was out of the country.
He added that the prosecution needed more time to try and reach Ebel and set a new date for him to appear before court.
Earlier during the hearing, Dennis Ireri, a motor vehicle inspector with the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) said the vehicle braking system was intact and in good working condition.
He said there were no skid marks at the scene of the accident at Makenji area, an indication that the driver did not try to stop the vehicle before the accident.
The prosecution’s application for an adjournment was allowed and the matter will be heard on March 20. – KNA
