A man who was in police custody in connection with the murder
of Monica Nyawira Kimani has been released. A Kiambu court yesterday freed
Brian Kassaine Spira, who is now a prosecution witness and was said to have
assisted police to reconstruct the events of the night Monica was killed. Brian
Kassaine He also helped police resolve the puzzle of how vital evidence was
allegedly destroyed by the principal suspects in the murder. Sources said the
prosecution had lined up at least 10 witnesses. According to police, Kassaine
explained how prime suspects in the murder approached him, seeking his
assistance on the night Monica was killed. Television journalist Jacque Maribe
and her fiancé, Joseph Irungu alias Jowie, are suspects in the killing. They
are expected to be charged on Monday. Kassaine, a neighbour of Irungu and
Maribe a Royal Park estate, Lang’ata, was said to have outlined the events of
the night Monica is believed to have been killed at her Lamuria Gardens apartment
off Denis Pritt Road, Nairobi. Avoid fake news! Subscribe to the Standard SMS
service and receive factual, verified breaking news as it happens. Text the
word ‘NEWS’ to 22840 Her body was found in a bathtub in her apartment on
September 20 with her throat slit. Kassaine was arrested on September 28 after
it was established that Irungu used his (Kassaine’s) gun, allegedly in an
attempted suicide. Arrested him Police said they arrested him when they learnt
he had information in regard to Monica’s murder. The attempted suicide was said
to have taken place in Maribe’s house in Lang’ata, hours after Monica’s body
was found. During interrogation, Kassaine and his wife Catherine Piyon were
said to have convinced the prosecution that they could be witnesses. When
Kassaine was brought to court on October 1, he had his face covered. In his
statement, according to police, Kassaine said early on September 20, Irungu
went to his house and asked for paraffin to burn some items that were
disturbing him. According to police, Maribe knew about Irungu’s visit to
Kassaine’s house. Kassaine allegedly told Irungu he did not have any paraffin.
He told police he later learnt that “both Maribe and Irungu” used cans of air
freshener to burn clothes in their compound. In an affidavit, detectives said
key exhibits in the case, including a kanzu and a jacket, were found
partly burnt at Maribe’s compound and that the destruction was done with her
full knowledge. Police said their investigations had shown that on the day of
the murder, Maribe and Irungu were together. On September 21, at about 1 am,
Irungu went to Kassaine’s house and woke him up, asking him to go and secure a
gun from his bedroom. ALSO READ: Monica murder: Timelines in Maribe-Jowie case
Kassaine went to Maribe and Irungu’s house and secured the pistol with 28
bullets and one spent cartridge on the floor at the entrance to the walk-in
closet adjacent to the master bedroom on the upper floor. He added that Irungu
told him he had argued with Maribe, prompting him to attempt suicide. Kassaine,
his wife, and Maribe took Irungu to three different hospitals. On September 21
at about 7pm, they recorded a statement at Lang’ata Police Station claiming
Irungu had been shot by three gunmen on a motorbike. Kassaine later changed his
statement and gave what he claimed was the true version of the events of the
two nights. This has apparently convinced the prosecution to turn Kassaine into
a witness and drop his planned charges on the gun issue. Kiambu Principal
Magistrate Justus Kituku ordered Kassaine to report to the Directorate of
Criminal Investigations (DCI) every Thursday for two months to facilitate the
investigation. Kassaine, who has been in custody for 10 days, will also
surrender his passport to detectives to ensure he does not travel out of the
country. “The suspect is informed that failure to comply with the orders, the
police will be at liberty to seek a warrant of arrest from this court,” he
directed. “You will come back to court on December 14 for further directions.”
ALSO READ: What Jacque Maribe’s neighbour told police about Monica’s murder
Smiling Kassaine A smiling Kassaine came out of court and hugged his parents
and friends. Yesterday, a team of detectives that has been in Mombasa in search
of another suspect believed to have been in the company of Irungu on the day
Monica was killed returned to the city. It is not clear what the detectives
found. The team said it was compiling “what we have ahead of the court
sessions” on Monday. Another officer said it was believing the suspect at large
had knowledge on the whereabouts of the killer weapon and two sets of keys –
that of Monica’s house and her car – which are missing. The killer weapon is
key in the murder charge Irungu and Maribe. Images of the car Irungu used that
were captured by police cameras on the route from Denis Pritt Road to his
residence in Lang’ata show that the driver was in the company of another man.
of Monica Nyawira Kimani has been released. A Kiambu court yesterday freed
Brian Kassaine Spira, who is now a prosecution witness and was said to have
assisted police to reconstruct the events of the night Monica was killed. Brian
Kassaine He also helped police resolve the puzzle of how vital evidence was
allegedly destroyed by the principal suspects in the murder. Sources said the
prosecution had lined up at least 10 witnesses. According to police, Kassaine
explained how prime suspects in the murder approached him, seeking his
assistance on the night Monica was killed. Television journalist Jacque Maribe
and her fiancé, Joseph Irungu alias Jowie, are suspects in the killing. They
are expected to be charged on Monday. Kassaine, a neighbour of Irungu and
Maribe a Royal Park estate, Lang’ata, was said to have outlined the events of
the night Monica is believed to have been killed at her Lamuria Gardens apartment
off Denis Pritt Road, Nairobi. Avoid fake news! Subscribe to the Standard SMS
service and receive factual, verified breaking news as it happens. Text the
word ‘NEWS’ to 22840 Her body was found in a bathtub in her apartment on
September 20 with her throat slit. Kassaine was arrested on September 28 after
it was established that Irungu used his (Kassaine’s) gun, allegedly in an
attempted suicide. Arrested him Police said they arrested him when they learnt
he had information in regard to Monica’s murder. The attempted suicide was said
to have taken place in Maribe’s house in Lang’ata, hours after Monica’s body
was found. During interrogation, Kassaine and his wife Catherine Piyon were
said to have convinced the prosecution that they could be witnesses. When
Kassaine was brought to court on October 1, he had his face covered. In his
statement, according to police, Kassaine said early on September 20, Irungu
went to his house and asked for paraffin to burn some items that were
disturbing him. According to police, Maribe knew about Irungu’s visit to
Kassaine’s house. Kassaine allegedly told Irungu he did not have any paraffin.
He told police he later learnt that “both Maribe and Irungu” used cans of air
freshener to burn clothes in their compound. In an affidavit, detectives said
key exhibits in the case, including a kanzu and a jacket, were found
partly burnt at Maribe’s compound and that the destruction was done with her
full knowledge. Police said their investigations had shown that on the day of
the murder, Maribe and Irungu were together. On September 21, at about 1 am,
Irungu went to Kassaine’s house and woke him up, asking him to go and secure a
gun from his bedroom. ALSO READ: Monica murder: Timelines in Maribe-Jowie case
Kassaine went to Maribe and Irungu’s house and secured the pistol with 28
bullets and one spent cartridge on the floor at the entrance to the walk-in
closet adjacent to the master bedroom on the upper floor. He added that Irungu
told him he had argued with Maribe, prompting him to attempt suicide. Kassaine,
his wife, and Maribe took Irungu to three different hospitals. On September 21
at about 7pm, they recorded a statement at Lang’ata Police Station claiming
Irungu had been shot by three gunmen on a motorbike. Kassaine later changed his
statement and gave what he claimed was the true version of the events of the
two nights. This has apparently convinced the prosecution to turn Kassaine into
a witness and drop his planned charges on the gun issue. Kiambu Principal
Magistrate Justus Kituku ordered Kassaine to report to the Directorate of
Criminal Investigations (DCI) every Thursday for two months to facilitate the
investigation. Kassaine, who has been in custody for 10 days, will also
surrender his passport to detectives to ensure he does not travel out of the
country. “The suspect is informed that failure to comply with the orders, the
police will be at liberty to seek a warrant of arrest from this court,” he
directed. “You will come back to court on December 14 for further directions.”
ALSO READ: What Jacque Maribe’s neighbour told police about Monica’s murder
Smiling Kassaine A smiling Kassaine came out of court and hugged his parents
and friends. Yesterday, a team of detectives that has been in Mombasa in search
of another suspect believed to have been in the company of Irungu on the day
Monica was killed returned to the city. It is not clear what the detectives
found. The team said it was compiling “what we have ahead of the court
sessions” on Monday. Another officer said it was believing the suspect at large
had knowledge on the whereabouts of the killer weapon and two sets of keys –
that of Monica’s house and her car – which are missing. The killer weapon is
key in the murder charge Irungu and Maribe. Images of the car Irungu used that
were captured by police cameras on the route from Denis Pritt Road to his
residence in Lang’ata show that the driver was in the company of another man.