• Gitau was shocked since he had not sent the suspect to collect the vehicle. He reported the matter to Riruta police station.
• Kiiru said he was a man from a humble background and he could only pay realistic bond terms.
A mechanic was yesterday charged with stealing a businessman's Mitsubishi lorry parts and selling them as scrap metal.
Joseph Ng’ang’a Kiiru is accused of sneaking into Peter Gitau's compound in Riruta, Nairobi, on June 8 and stealing the Sh800,000 vehicle. Gitau was away during the theft.
Kiiru denied the charges before Kibera senior resident magistrate Esther Boke. He told the court that he only took the lorry to ferry water to his friend’s home.
It is alleged that the suspect went to into the complainant's compound and found his wife whom he convinced that he had been allowed by her husband to take the vehicle.
Kiiru is reported to have taken lorry while in the company of a friend and quickly disappeared from the compound. Later in the day, the wife called her husband to inform him that the friend he had given the vehicle had not brought it back and his phone was off.
Gitau was shocked since he had not sent the suspect to collect the vehicle. He reported the matter to Riruta police station.
Police began investigations and found the lorry at the suspect's place of work in Dandora in a horrible shape. They took him to Dandora police station, then later to Riruta police station before being taken to court and charged.
In defence, Kiiru told court that the complainant was his good friend. He asked that the matter be set aside so that his temper cools down.
The suspect said they have been friends for a long time and a "simple damage" on the lorry could not ruin their relationship.
Kiiru said he was a man from a humble background and he could only pay realistic bond terms.
The magistrate released him on a bond of Sh100,000 or a Sh50,000 bail pending hearing of the case on September 9. The mention is scheduled for June 26.
Edited by P. Wanambisi