Police holding 17-year-old girl over death of Chris Msando

The late Chris Msando (Photo: Courtesy)

A 17-year-old girl is the latest suspect to be held by police over the murder of Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) ICT Deputy Director, Chris Msando.

She was presented before a Kiambu court Thursday where police successfully asked for more time to hold her.

The Kiambu Juvenile Court allowed police to hold her at the Muthaiga Police Station for seven days as police continue with the investigation.

Police said the girl was arrested in Awendo, Migori County Wednesday (August 21) and later brought to Nairobi after she was found with a mobile phone that was used to send a threatening message to Msando.

Msando had last December complained of receiving threatening messages on his mobile phone and reported the matter at the Central police station.

It is not clear how and why the girl came to own the mobile phone amid claims she may have been set up. Police from Homicide department drove to Migori to pick up the juvenile.

This brings to three the number of suspects in custody over the July 29 murder of Msando and a 21 year old woman Maryanne Ngumbu whose bodies were found dumped in a forest in Muguga, Kiambu County.

Two other people were last Wednesday detained for 14 days in the same probe.

The two Idra Mwalimo Kisasa and Andrew Kipkoech Rono appeared before Kiambu Law Courts Principle Magistrate Justus Kituku who detained them for two weeks.

In an affidavit sworn by Nicholus Ole Sena, an investigator at the Directorate of criminal investigations, the preliminary investigations, the two are linked with the murder of Msando and Ms  Ngumbu.

Ole Sena said the police recovered cell phone that was used to send threatening messages to the deceased prior to his death.

"On diverse dates prior to his death, the deceased had reported threats to his life at Central Police Station via OB number 12 of 22/12/2016 where he gave numbers that had been sending threats to him which included the number of the respondents," said Sena.

Both Msando and Ms Ngumbu were strangled after they were abducted from the city centre.

Police say they are yet to know the primary scene of crime of the murder. They termed as secondary, the forest where the bodies were found dumped.

The team says they can’t trace the clothes and other personal belongings he had before his death.