Image: DCI
Boda boda rider Zachariah Nyaore Obadiah and 16 others suspected of sexually harassing a female motorist along Wangari Maathai Road will spend two more days in remand.
This is after the Director of Public Prosecution on Thursday sought five more days to hold the suspects to allow him go through the file and give his decision on whether to charge them or not.
The suspects, who were arraigned in two separate courts, were detained until Monday.
The DPP is expected to give his directions on the matter.
Obadiah and the 16, who have been in custody for more than 10 days, are said to have given police more details on what transpired during the incident on March 4.
In their application to detain the suspects, the prosecution informed court that investigations were complete and the file had been forwarded to the DPP on Thursday morning.
“With a view to making a decision to charge the suspects before court, the DPP requests for five more days to enable him peruse the file," the prosecution said.
"Then we will give consent on whether the suspects will take plea or not.”
The prosecution further said the decision to charge the suspects is a weighty burden to the state which can only be done through thorough scrutiny of evidence on record.
Senior counsel Philip Murgor was present in court for the victim.
The suspects opposed the five days claiming they had been in custody for too long being the bread winners of their families.
“We need to see our family. My wife gave birth three days ago. We pray to be released even tomorrow to attend to our family”, one of the suspects said.
Milimani Principal Magistrate Robert Shikwe agreed with the prosecution to have them detained for longer saying it was crucial for the DPP to go through the file.
Early in March, the 16 were remanded after the court ruled that the matter was of public interest and there was need for police to be given time to probe the suspects.
Obadiah who was at large, was arraigned later after his dramatic arrest at the Kenyan-Tanzania border.
He escaped after learning he was wanted by authorities over robbery with violence and assault following the incident.
The suspect dumped his mobile phone at a garbage in Mukuru slums as he escaped a police dragnet.
Detectives recovered the gadget belonging to him from a dumping site in the slum on March 7.
In court, police had filed an affidavit seeking to detain the other suspects James Mutinda, Samuel Wafula, Charles Omondi, Japheth Bosire, Hassan Farah, Wanjiku Lincon, Harrison Maina, among others.
Inspector of Police Yvonne Mwanzia said that the victim, who is a diplomat, reported the incident at the Parklands police station.
She said the victim, while driving the vehicle along Wangari Mathai road, on reaching Barabara Tano, was involved in a traffic road accident with a boda boda rider.
“Suddenly, a group of bodaboda riders moved to where her vehicle had stopped and attacked her, accusing her of hitting one of their colleague,” Mwanzia said in court .
The officer added that while the victim was still inside her vehicle, the suspects started assaulting her and in the process, they robbed her of a mobile phone valued at Sh130,000.