Slain lawyer Robert Chesang’ lived in a hotel for more than three months and paid about Sh500,000 after he was locked out of his matrimonial home.
Between September 19 and November 11 last year, he spent Sh446,250 at Sandalwood Hotel after he was barred from his house.
The deceased had returned to his matrimonial house in Moke Gardens, Lukenya, Machakos county, a few weeks before he met his death. He only landed the chance to occupy the house after his widow Maisy Omungala, a magistrate, was transferred to Nyeri in December.
In case number 47 of 2018 filed for protection against domestic violence, Chesang’ alleged that he had been forced to move out of his house because his wife was violent and was using police officers to harass and intimidate him.
The lawyer requested that the courts grant him unconditional access to his home. He claimed the locks to the home had been changed. The house was also under police guard.
He also said Maisy had transferred his two children to a new school and denied him access to them.
“From August 17 to date, I’ve lost all that I’ve acquired progressively since I started married life due to illegal actions of the respondents. I have technically lost the house, the cars and all my earthly belongings,” Chesang’ said in an affidavit.
He also asked the court to allow him access to his two vehicles; Lexus and Premio cars, which he claimed were being used by police officers.
“I pray that the court orders police and other judicial officers to stop being used by wife to harass and intimidate me; and to stop using my cars as if they are state property,” Chesang’ submitted.
He had expressed dissatisfaction on the manner in which his case was being conducted, alleging interference from his wife and other magistrates. His case had been transferred five times before a ruling was made.
complaint about case
In a protest letter to one of the magistrates, Chesang’ alleged having overheard at Sandalwood Hotel a Mavoko law courts magistrate say he would ensure the “case on domestic violence is not ruled on”.
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On September 24 last year, he wrote that while seated on a different table, senior resident magistrate Linus Kassan loudly discussed the case on the phone.
“I’m in charge of Mavoko court and I have instructed and ordered the trial magistrate to suspend the ruling coming up on Friday 21 of the domestic violence matter. I will make sure that a ruling will never be delivered on the matter. The trial magistrate is not conducting the case in the way I want,” he quoted the magistrate as having said.
In response, Kassan wrote three texts messages, asserting that he had never interfered with Chesang’s case. He said the lawyer used the claim as a tactic to ensure the case was not assigned to him after other magistrates opted out.
“Could that be your tactic — attack me so that I don’t touch the file? You don’t need to worry brother. I have never seen your file. One day you will know that you were wrong,” he said in an SMS.
The same week, Kassan was transferred to the Machakos law courts.
Chesang’ asked the court to order ‘competent’ police officers to investigate the assault charges against him afresh, claiming they were manufactured by his wife. He was locked up for three days before he was released on Sh10,000 bail.
“I pray that the false accusation on assault by wife OB 24/17/08/2018 at Athi River be investigated afresh by the Machakos county commander or any authority without interference from wife and a report be filed 21 days later,” the affidavit read.
“I pray that the court orders the first respondent [Maisy] stop being violent and misusing the police to harass and humiliate innocent people, twisting things to portray herself as the victim and making false claims to the police.”
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Chesang’s application, which ran concurrently with the assault case against him, was initially met with obstacles after three magistrates disqualified themselves before the case was placed under Machakos chief magistrate Yusuf Shikanda.
In his ruling on November 9 last year, Shikanda dismissed the police on jurisdiction ground and ordered that Chesang’ be escorted to his home so he could pick his belongings. The police investigating the brutal murder of lawyer Robert Chesang’ believe the death is linked to a business deal gone wrong.
Chesang’, 45, was gunned down in his Moke Gardens home Lukenya, Machakos, between 11.30am and 12.30pm on Sunday. The killers first kidnapped two guards at the main gate of the estate.