Mavoko Law Courts, where the two suspects were arraigned in Athi River, Machakos County, on November 25, 2025.
Two suspects earlier charged with murder at Mavoko Law Courts have been remanded at the Athi River G.K. Prisons in Kitengela, Kajiado County.
Senior Principal Magistrate Martha Nazushi ordered that John Otieno Ochieng, alias Jonte, and Martin Okongo Muruli, alias Marto, be remanded at the said prison for seven days pending a pre-bail report.
Nazushi made the orders after the duo, charged with murder, pleaded not guilty to the charges presented against them when they appeared before her on Wednesday.
They are facing allegations relating to the killing of Athi River businesswoman Catherine Nduku Matheka.
The magistrate ordered that a pre-bail report be filed, and slated December 5 for mention of the case.
The pair had earlier appeared in court on Tuesday before the same magistrate, but did not take a plea after the prosecution requested to amend the charge sheets.
The court allowed the application and directed that the two be presented again on November 26, 2025, for plea taking.
The suspects are jointly charged with robbery with violence, contrary to Section 295 as read with Section 296(2) of the Penal Code, and causing grievous harm, contrary to Section 234 of the Penal Code.
According to the prosecution, the offences occurred on the night of August 24, 2025, at around 11.00 pm in the Sofia Site area of Athi River, within Machakos County.
It is alleged that the two robbed Nduku of two mobile phones, a Samsung and a Tecno, valued at Sh17,000, and that immediately before or during the robbery, the victim was fatally assaulted.
In the second count, the suspects are alleged to have willfully wounded Gerald Mwendwa Muunda using crude weapons during the same incident, reportedly with the intent to cause grievous harm.
The two suspects are said to be residents of Mlolongo and Kitengela in Machakos and Kajiado counties, respectively.
They have been in police custody since their arrest by DCI detectives attached to Athi River Police Station on November 5, 2025.
Officers earlier secured court orders allowing their detention as investigations continued.
On the night she was killed, Nduku closed her business at around 11.00 pm and hired a boda boda rider to take her home.
They were reportedly ambushed near Site Estate, about 100 metres from her residence.
Nduku sustained deep cuts and died at the scene, while a passerby rescued the rider and later treated at Kitengela Level Four Hospital and Machakos Level Five Hospital.
Police indicated that the attackers took Nduku’s two phones and a handbag. The rider was not robbed, though his motorbike remains missing.
Independent checks indicated that a floodlight at the scene had been vandalised days earlier and was non-functional on the night of the attack.
Relatives also shared that Nduku had previously survived an attempted attack at the same spot. Her body was taken to Shalom Community Hospital Mortuary for autopsy before burial at her matrimonial home.
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