19 People Arrested for Trespassing Ruto’s Naivasha Land
Nineteen individuals apprehended for unlawfully entering President William Ruto’s estate in Naivasha appeared before the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.
The individuals facing charges, which includes a female, will be staying overnight at the Lang’ata police station until the court reaches a verdict.
The group of 19 individuals was alleged to have vandalized the barbed fence of the farm on February 29, 2024, resulting in damage to the property estimated at Ksh2.2 million.
Law enforcement officials probing the matter suggested that the individuals in question be held in custody for two weeks while they conducted inquiries to ascertain the details of the incident.
“There has been a lot of public outrage with some members of the public trying to storm the police station at Naivasha Sub County to rescue the respondents and consequently remove them from safe custody and avert the due process of the law,” investigating officer John Kinyongie’s affidavit reads in part.
Mbugua Muriithi, the attorney representing the respondents, has alleged that the police are employing land grabbers and politicians to unjustly target innocent Kenyans. He further stated that the 19 individuals brought before the court were not guilty of the accusations against them.
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Mbugua additionally urged the court and the investigating officers to bring the suspects before a Nakuru court, by jurisdiction, rather than choosing the Milimani Law Courts.
“The 19 were arrested in Naivasha, I don’t see why they can’t be detained at Naivasha police station,” Mbugua argued
“They have no relatives in Nairobi. Detaining them in Nairobi will essentially render them IDPs,” he added.
Nairobi Magistrate Gilbert Shikwe directed that the 19 individuals remain detained at the Lang’ata police station until Wednesday when he will provide further instructions.
In a comparable event that occurred in March of the previous year, unidentified individuals raided the Northlands farm belonging to former President Uhuru Kenyatta in Ruiru. They absconded with more than 1,400 Dorper sheep, estimated to be worth Ksh70 million.
The assailants took advantage of the situation to earn money quickly by vending the sheep to pedestrians for as little as Ksh1,000. However, a single sheep is typically valued at around Ksh 50,000, varying based on its breed.
19 People Arrested for Trespassing Ruto’s Naivasha Land
