- Corporal Fredrick Odemba, who is one of the investigating officers in the Inquest, on Thursday, told Milimani senior principal magistrate Zainab Abdul that after noticing the inconsistencies, they embarked on knowing who Omar was.
- He said they noticed that at one point, Tecra had feared for her life and called her parents to organize for her security.
Image: COURTESY
The investigating officer in the death inquest of Keroche heiress Tecra Mungai has told a Nairobi court that they noticed some inconsistencies in Omar Lali's report on what transpired leading to the death of his lover.
Corporal Fredrick Odemba, who is one of the investigating officers in the Inquest, on Thursday, told Milimani senior principal magistrate Zainab Abdul that after noticing the inconsistencies, they embarked on knowing who Omar was.
He said they noticed that at one point, Tecra had feared for her life and called her parents to organize for her security.
He was testifying in the death inquest of Tecra who died in 2020 after allegedly falling in a holiday home in Lamu.
"We interrogated Omar at the scene with the aim of knowing what happened. He told us that on the evening of April 22, 2020, after taking supper, they embarked on drinking and that in the middle of the night, in his word, he chewed blackout and slept leaving Tecra at the table only for him to be woken up by a thunder-like fall and a scream at the stairs," Odemba told court.
The officer said Omar's report said he went and found it was Tecra and gave her first aid before calling neighbours to help him take her to the hospital.
The officer further narrated that at the time he and other officers got to the crime scene, Omar had been arrested and was already in the cell.
"We went to the cell to pick up Omar so that we can proceed to the crime scene together. He took us through the house which was a two-floor building. On the ground floor, there was a swimming pool. On the first floor was the main bedroom and two other bedrooms. The second floor had a kitchen, dining hall, a sitting room and a library. There was a rooftop which had treestand," he said.
He said in the same place, they were taken through by a housekeeper and the manager.
Omar explained to the officers that on the evening of April 22, 2020, he had planned a house party and some arrangements had been made for drinks.
The housekeeper procured for them coconut juice. He had also prepared for them some passion fruit juice then he left.
On April 23, 2020, the officer said Geoffrey Mario, the caretaker of the house, came to clean the house.
"He opened the door and started cleaning from the ground floor. When he moved to where the bedroom was, he noted that the door of the main bedroom was open, nobody was in the room and the bed looked disturbed," Odemba said.
The caretaker is said to have moved to the second floor and found nobody in the room.
He tried calling Tecra's phone and it went unanswered. He called Omar Lali's and it was off the air, as he kept calling he noticed a phone beefing on the bed but he did not pick it up.
"He went downstairs and noticed some watery-like fluid in the bedroom, and down the staircase, were some blood spots. He got worried, continued calling Omar who was off the air and he didn't get him," he said.
In the dining room, he said the caretaker noticed some used glasses. There were fallen leaves of miraa both on the floor and table.
The caretaker got worried and rushed to the house of the manager to report what he had found.
He briefed us that as they were still there, Omar called the manager and reported that they had a small accident in the house and that at that particular time, they were in the hospital where Tecra was being attended to.
"Geoffrey Mario further told us that Omar told them they should not be worried and they should continue cleaning the house."
In November last year, Omar Lali narrated how his relationship with the late Tecra was “full of love”.
He denied allegations that he was involved in the fall that led to her death.
The boat operator from Lamu said he had never had any disagreement with the deceased during the period of their relationship.
"Ours was a life full of love. Tecra loved my mother and the entire family. When I welcomed her home, she said she would live with us for the rest of her life,” said Omar.
According to Omar, Tecra had accepted to be married to him adding that they enjoyed each other’s company adding that she was jovial, lovely, welcoming and outgoing.