Phone Access: Prison Officer and Murder Suspect Kang’ethe Clash in Court
Superintendent of Prisons in charge of documentation Martin Onyango has dismissed claims that they have been denying murder suspect Kevin Kang’ethe access to contacts to get new counsel.
Appearing before Milimani Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina on Friday, Onyango gave a timeline of the events from February 14, when Kang’ethe was first detained at the Industrial Area Remand and Allocation Centre.
After arrival at the prison, the US fugitive was allocated to block K26 for accommodation.
This, according to Onyango, is where high-risk clientele and those charged with capital crimes are detained.
Kang’ethe was then informed of his rights under custody, including Article 49(1)(c) of the Constitution which states that;
“An arrested person has the right to communicate with an advocate and other persons whose assistance is necessary”.
Upon knowing this, the man (Kang’ethe) “personally” gave four contacts that he wanted to talk to while in the detention location.
They belonged to his attorneys including David Muthama, Anthony Kago, and Mohamed Ahmed.
The Prison Superintendent told the court that it is procedural for a detainee to be allocated two officers during the day.
These are an inspector and a Corporal who are detailed to look after him in the block and to escort him wherever he would like to go.
There was no exception in Kang’ethe’s case.
“During the nights, six officers are allocated to guard Kang’ethe,” he added.
Onyango stated that in case any requests for escorts including to the documentation room, Kang’ethe is expected to notify Inspector Ndolo and Corporal Njeru.
The court heard that since the suspect’s arrival to the Industrial Area, he has visited Onyago’s office severally for access to the welfare phone to contact his lawyers and relatives.
“He usually comes, I usher him in and give him one of the two welfare phones to contact the persons without interaction or coercion,” the court was told.
“Two days after his arrival on February 16, Kang’ethe made two calls at 3:30 pm.”
On February 21, he made calls to eight contacts between 9:30 am and 10:30 am while on Feb 22 at 8:40 am, he made two calls to his contacts.
Onyango further said on February 28, between 10 am to 10:30 am, Kang’ethe contacted two people.
He presented a document with the data obtained from Safaricom through the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) office dated February 14, and February 28.
Further, Onyango said on February 22, Kang’ethe was visited by Inspector Patrick Wachira from the DCI Homicide Department.
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He brought along seven inventory documents to supply to Kang’ethe, which the prison officer signed as received.
The court heard that throughout his stay at the prison, Kang’ethe never complained about the denial of access to a phone or his contacts.
“He has never complained to me. He is very humble and says “Thank you very much sir” after he has contacted his people,” Onyango said.
Kang’ethe however denied the statement, maintaining his claims that he has been denied access to contacts and that he feels like he is out of touch with his people.
He also claimed that he never provided the four contacts in question, saying those were given to the prison officers and his attorneys before the relationship between them and him ended.
On the Safaricom data of the phone calls, Kang’ethe stated that he had barely talked in the calls noting that some showed the call period as zero (0) minutes.
“I am shocked,” he stated regarding Onyango’s statement.
“The level of frustration I have had, I’ve not been able to get in touch with anyone.”
He also said his other lawyer, John Ndengwa had been denied access to him when he tried to visit.
In response, Onyango said that on Thursday at noon, two superior prison officers visited him.
They had a conversation with Kang’ethe and murder convict Joseph “Jowie” Irungu to know if they were facing any problems with and at the institution.
According to the officer, the fugitive’s complaint was only about toiletries, soap, and things he could use while in prison.
Onyango said he was directed to provide the same, which he did.
“He (Kang’ethe) had a chance to state his complaints but did not say anything about the phone calls,” he added.
Still maintaining his complaints, Kang’ethe said, “The toiletries were a callous question. And the officer in charge only wanted to check us because he never did”.
This is to mean that there was no chance to tell of his alleged plight.
A stunned Anyango stood to tell the court that he did not understand the man sitting at the dock.
“The Kang’ethe here is different from the Kang’ethe in prison.”
The State told the court that it needed directions on how the matter would proceed.
They requested a further mention date on whether Kang’ethe will have a counsel so that they can proceed on the issue of bail/bond.
Magistrate Onyina directed Kang’ethe to liaise with the DCI and police commanders on the issue of Ndengwa’s visitation.
He also ordered that he be provided access to his contacts to help get new counsel. The mention date has been set for March 13, 2024.
Phone Access: Prison Officer and Murder Suspect Kang’ethe Clash in Court