Police were yesterday allowed to detain a woman accused of strangling her four month baby to death for five days to complete investigations.
Ruto, 22, was arraigned before Milimani magistrate Kennedy Cheruiyot where police requested to be allowed to detain her for 10 days pending completion of investigations.
Ruto is accused of strangling her baby to death and wrapping the body in a green paper bag used for disposing off waste.
The charge sheet said she committed the offence on October 21 at Olenguruone in Nakuru county. The body was found at a dumping site near meteorological staff quarters in Nairobi on October 24.
Investigating DCI officer Peter Kosgey said the suspect was still being interrogated.
Kosgey said they have since established that the suspect left her rural home on October 21 for Nairobi where she was to secure employment at the meteorological staff quarters.
She was to be employed by one Pascaline Chemaiyo as a house help. Chemaiyo works at the meteorological department.
“She left home with her baby but strangled the child and put the body in her the paperbag and travelled to Nairobi where she dumped it,” reads the affidavit.
Kosgey said he was yet to retrieve the phone data from Ruto, conduct a postmortem and DNA sampling for analysis. Police were also yet to record statements from witnesses.
“It is for such reasons that Ruto should be held at Kilimani police station for 10 more days to assist the investigating officer,” Kosgey said.
He said Ruto was likely to interfere with investigations and compilation of evidence if released.
The suspect was arrested on November 2 in Olmariko village in Narok county.
Police shared information on social media to help them nab Ruto after no one claimed the body of the child.
“On November 1, some members of public came up and shared some information with the DCI in Kilimani which lead to the arrest of Ruto,” Kosgey said.
Ruto’s lawyer George Wajackoyah opposed her continued detention, saying his client had been in custody for two weeks.
Wajackoyah said Ruto had not changed her undergarments.
“Ten days requested by the prosecution is an abuse of the court process because they had enough time to conduct that postmortem,” Wajackoyah said.
Cheruiyot said Ruto be detained for another five days.