Tharaka-Nithi OCS charged for sodomising six boys

Tharaka-Nithi Officer Commanding Police Station (OCS) was charged on Wednesday at Embu Court for sodomising, indecently touching six boys’ genitals, and showing them phonographic videos.

John Kimathi Marete, who was the Ntumu Police Station OCS in Maara Sub-county of Tharaka-Nithi was presented before Embu Senior Resident Magistrate Tony Kwambai where he was charged with the offences.

The OCS who was heavily guarded by several police officers while in the dock remained calm as the charges were read to him before he denied them.

His advocate applied for his release on bond but the magistrate declined following a strong objection by the prosecution.

He was charged with six counts of deliberately and willfully sodomising six boys aged between 12 and 16 years on diverse dates between the year 2017 and December 2020 at Chogoria sub-location.

Marete was further charged with unlawfully and intentionally exposing three boys aged 16 years to phonographic audiovisuals on December 21, 2020.

The OCS denied the offence and applied for release on bond through his lawyer and requested to be attending the hearing and determination of the case from home.

However, the prosecution strongly opposed the application saying as a senior police officer they were fearing he would tamper with the investigations.

The prosecution said the suspect had already started interfering with the investigation after allegedly sending some proxies to one of his victims who had gone into hiding.

The prosecution further said it was looking for more victims of the suspects, and he might be charged with more offences and thus requested that he be held in custody until they finish their investigations.

Kwambai ordered that the suspect remains in custody until January 15 when he will reconsider the bond application to allow the police to complete their investigations.

The case was transferred to Embu from Chuka by Senior Resident Magistrate Mwanamkuu Sudi after the prosecution requested for the same to prevent intrusion of the case by the suspect. with the case.

The prosecution said that the suspect worked as OCS at Ntumu Police Station in Maara sub-county within the jurisdiction of the Chuka court.

The OCS was arrested on December 22 and produced in Chuka court before Chief Magistrate John Njoroge on the following day but the investigating officer sought five days to complete the probe.