The hearing of a case in which two police officers are accused of shooting dead a woman at City Park failed to start yesterday. The defence indicated they were not ready to proceed.
The hearing was begins today.
Janet Waiyaki, 41, was shot dead at City Park, Nairobi, in May last year. Her nephew Bernard Chege, 26, was injured. The trial was to start yesterday, with Chege as the first prosecution witness.
But lawyer Ham Lagat for the accused persons was held up in another court.
Police officers William Chirchir and Godfrey Kirui are accused of killing Waiyaki in a hail of bullets after they opened fire at a car she was in together with Chege.
She was pronounced dead at Avenue Park Hospital. Chege survived but was wounded.
Reports indicate there were five policemen at the scene. One was not armed and two did not fire. All of them and Waiyaki’s husband, George Kirumbi, recorded statements at Gigiri police station.
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Waiyaki’s husband is an elder brother of Chege’s father.
Chirchir is - an Administration Police officer from Makadara police station - and Kirui from Industrial Area police station. They have denied the murder and were released on a personal bond.
They were required to deposit Sh700,000 bail each to secure their release. Judge Stella Mutuku further gave the two officers an alternative of executing a personal bond of Sh2 million each with two sureties of Sh1 million each. She said the prosecution failed to give compelling reasons to deny the two bond.
The International Justice Mission (IJM) has been allowed to participate in the trial on behalf of the victims.
Last year after the shooting, Chege said he had driven into the park in the company of his aunt. He had his mother’s car. They parked in a bushy area at around at 8am. A city askari called police shortly before 10am on suspicion the two were up to no good.
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