• Omar’s lawyers told the court he was forcibly taken away by unknown gunmen while in the company of his relatives.
• Chief magistrate said it was not the first time such an abduction happened.
Image: FILE
A Nairobi court has ordered investigations into the disappearance of Liban Omar who was abducted a day after he was acquitted of Westgate terror attack charges.
Chief magistrate Francis Andayi acquitted Omar of terror charges on October 7, saying the prosecution did not prove that he was involved in the Westgate terror attack of September 2013.
Andayi on Thursday gave the order for the investigations after Omar’s lawyers told the court he was forcibly taken away by unknown gunmen while in the company of his relatives.
The magistrate said it was not the first time such an abduction happened. He said the trend of an accused released by a court being abducted has been rampant and requires serious investigations.
Defence lawyer Chacha Mwita raised the issue in court on different occasions regarding other accused persons who have also been abducted.
“If at all this issue is true, then it should be taken up by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights who should investigate the issues surrounding their disappearance,” Andayi said.
The court urged investigators to take the matter seriously because the trend is dangerous. Andayi also urged other human rights organisations willing to take up the matter to do so and conduct their probes.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Abdi and Hussein Mustafa will be sentenced on Friday next week by the same court. The two were Omar's co-accused and were found guilty.
The case was adjourned to next week after the court heard that the pre-sentencing report and the Westgate victims impact statements were not ready
Assistant DPP Edwin Okello said only nine victims in the Westgate attack have recorded statements and that they need more time to get more statements. He asked for one week to be able to get more statements from the victims before the court sentences the convicts.
Probation officer Peter Macharia said he has interviewed Abdi and Mustafa and their relatives.
Macharia said the needed time to interview more victims in the report so that it can help the magistrate in sentencing.
The court ordered the press not to cover any of the victim’s impacts statements that have been produced in court. The order was issued after the prosecution asked the court to bar any coverage of the statements by the victims due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Andayi warned the media not to publish any of the impacts statements from any of the victims.
Edited by P.O