Kilifi deputy governor Gideon Saburi has been released on Sh200,000 cash bail or Sh500,000 bond with a similar surety.
The ruling made on Thursday by a Mombasa magistrate court also requires that he self-quarantines for 14 days.
Saburi was arrested on April 3 for exposing the public to coronavirus after defying self-quarantine regulations when he jetted into the country on March 6.
Mombasa Principal Magistrate Elvis Micheka on Thursday dismissed an application by the Director of Public Prosecution to continue holding Saburi for 10 more days.
"There are no compelling reasons to deny the accused person bail. He is therefore released on Sh200,000 cash bail or a bond of Sh500,000 with similar amount of surety," Micheka said.
He gave out conditions that in addition to self-quarantining, Saburi should not make contact with any of the witnesses in Kilifi county.
On Wednesday, State Counsel Alloys Kemo had applied to have Saburi detained for 10 more days to allow the investigation officers to complete their work.
Kemo said the police need more time to collect evidence and record statement from key witnesses at the county government of Kilifi.
"We need evidence from staff who work under him and key documents from the Kilifi county government and the immigration offices. Given his status in Kilifi county, he might intimidate the subordinate staff,” said Kemo.
He added that the police need to get evidence from the accused person's mobile phones to establish his location from the day he jetted into the country.
However, Saburi’s lawyer George Kithi said his client never tested positive for Covid-19, therefore he cannot be held in isolation. He said the police had enough time to collect evidence since Saburi's arrest on April 3.
“The accused person never tested positive for Covid-19, why do they want to continue holding him in isolation. An isolation centre should be on medical grounds, not punishment,” argued Kithi.
Kithi poked holes on the purported medical report from Kenya Medical Research Institute, dated March 21, submitted in court by the prosecution showing that Saburi had tested positive for Covid-19.
“The report does not confirm that the accused person ever tested positive for Covid-19. The report is a photocopy, does not have an official stamp, and lastly my client never submitted any samples to this institution nor its staff for Covid-19 testing,” he said.
He submitted a medical report from Coast General Hospital, which showed that the DG was tested thrice on March 23, March 26 and March 31 and all results were negative.
“What is the medical explanation that my client was positive on March 21, but two days later he is negative without taking any medication. No asprin, no paracetamol,” said Kithi.
The matter will proceed on May 5
