Tracking Fidel: Inside the final hours of Raila Odinga’s son

CORD leader Raila Odinga with other leaders at Fidel’s house.[PHOTOS: TABITHA OTWORI/STANDARD]

NAIROBI: As the country mourns the sudden death of Fidel Odinga, son of CORD leader and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, The Standard has reconstructed his movements on the day and night before he died.

The late Fidel met several people including his family and friends moments before he met his untimely death.

Fidel, whose body was discovered Sunday morning had lunch at his dad’s home before leaving to party the whole of Saturday afternoon and evening with friends before he was driven home by a taxi driver in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

On Saturday around midday, Fidel left his house situated along Miotoni Road in Karen, saying he wanted to meet his father since they had not seen each other since New Year.

He then drove to his father’s residence, less than 10 kilometres away, where he found visitors who included Taita Taveta Senator Dan Mwazo and his wife. He had a light lunch and a discussion with Mwazo before excusing himself.

His home is situated near the National Defense College (NDC), while his father’s residence is at the end of Karen near the border with Kajiado County.

At around 2pm, Fidel drove to Ruby restaurant in Kilimani where he met with one of his friends Tom Alila who was in the company of Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) Secretary General Francis Atwoli, Muhoroni MP Otieno K’Oyoo and former Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo.

He had a brief chat with the group before excusing himself to pick someone up near the Somali Embassy in the same neighbourhood.

“He stayed with us for about five minutes and rushed to see someone near the Somali Embassy,” Alila told the police at Fidel’s home.

Fidel then left Kilimani for Westlands, where he joined his friend Robert Gichuru for a late lunch at the popular Art Café, Oval Place around 4pm before leaving for drinks with more friends at the exclusive Capital Club. He left again at about 11.30pm after a friend identified as Banarbas Temere, a Ugandan national, invited them for a drink at the posh Sankara Hotel in Westlands.

At Sankara, Fidel and the Ugandan are said to have joined Mabior Garang, son of the late South Sudan leader John Garang, and several other friends, who included one of his cousins for drinks until 2.30am.

Gichuru told the police that Fidel asked for a taxi to drop him home because he did not wish to drink and drive.

DRIVEN HOME

Two cab drivers from Smart Fellas Taxis ca,me; one drove his Range Rover and followed them to his Miotoni Road residence in Karen. The Range Rover, which was surrounded by the police tape, was in the parking lot of Fidel’s residence Sunday afternoon, and still had its parking lights on.

When he got home, Fidel rang the kitchen bell and his house-help responded. He apologised to her for waking her up so early in the morning before heading to the guest wing to sleep, since according to the house-help, he didn’t want to disturb his wife and baby who were asleep.

On Sunday at around 6.30am, his wife went to check on her husband only to discover his lifeless body. She then called her mother-in-law Ida Odinga, saying there was a problem in the house and asked her to rush there.

Ida and her husband Raila arrived before 7am and called for an ambulance. A Red Cross ambulance arrived but the medics told the distraught parents and Fidel’s wife that he had already passed on.

Raila then called some of his family members and friends, including his co-Principal Kalonzo Musyoka, ODM Chairman John Mbadi and his brother Dr Oburu Oginga, among others, to break the unfortunate news of his son’s demise.

As news filtered in of his demise, youths, mainly from Kibera, walked to Karen to protest the mysterious death even as the family and CORD leaders called for calm. The youths forced their way into the house where they were allowed to view the body of the late Fidel, a man they fondly referred to as their fallen “general”.

An eight-hour autopsy was conducted on the body by a team of forensic pathologists led by the Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor at the house.

The body was moved to the Lee Funeral Home last evening.

CID Director Ndegwa Muhoro was among the first senior security officials to arrive in the home and he briefed MPs and other leaders on the progress of the police investigation that is being co-ordinated by the Nairobi County CID Commander Nicholas Kamwende.

Most of those who were with Fidel before he died recorded statements with the police, while officers were dispatched to the restaurants he visited to record statements from those who served him.

Several MPs, senators and governors, among them Evans Kidero (Nairobi), Cyprian Awiti (Homa Bay), Okoth Obado (Migori) and Cotu’s Atwoli were among those who camped at the deceased’s home to condole with the family.

Both the family and pathologists were yet to release the preliminary cause of death as the body was being prepared to be transferred to the Lee Funeral Home.