From V8 to Mercedes: How former Nakuru mayor Thuo drove around with a Sh1b Will

Before his death, Joseck Thuo, a former Nakuru mayor, allegedly drove around with the Will detailing how his vast empire estimated to be worth Sh1 billion would be distributed.

Thuo allegedly would move the Will from one vehicle to another before he died on December 27, 2021, leaving behind two widows and five children.

The contents of the Will are now at the centre of a succession battle between the beneficiaries of the estate. While some have disowned it, others have maintained it is genuine.

Robert Kavisu, former driver to the late mayor, told a Nakuru court that the late Thuo allowed him to keep the Will inside the car, a place he considered safe.

Kavisu initially worked at Thuo’s construction site at Abbey Resort in Nakuru since 2007 before being promoted to Thuo’s driver in 2020.

He said his then-boss during the time produced a document and asked him to read the cover page out loud when he confirmed it was the deceased’s Will, as per the writings on the cover page.

He said Thuo used to call the Will ‘Kitabu’ and covered it in a newspaper marked JT, appended with his signature. He said the Will was moved from one vehicle to another depending on which the deceased used. When travelling in a V8, the driver placed the document in the glove compartment, but when using the Mercedes, he would place it in the hand rest compartment in the back seat, tasking Kavisu to ensure he travels with the Will.

When Thuo fell ill in December 2021, he was rushed to War Memorial Hospital using a Mercedes and later transferred to Mater Hospital in Nairobi. At the time, he said his boss was unconscious, but upon regaining consciousness, he started asking about the whereabouts of the vehicle and the keys.

Kavisu said he lied to him, saying he had the key, yet at the time, his son Geoffrey Thuo had the keys. The deceased succumbed three days later in the hospital.

Upon retrieving the key, Kavisu learnt that the Will was misplaced and put in an envelope, arousing suspicion. He then handed it to Nixon Thuo, the deceased’s son.

Nixon, his mother, Susan Wanjiru, and Maureen Thuo, his sister, have objected to the contents of the Will, claiming it was doctored.

Nixon claimed that his brother Geoffrey, his stepbrothers, and his cousins colluded in altering the Will, with their father’s signature failing to tally. He filed a complaint with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, Nakuru, in June 2022, requesting an investigation into the Will.

Nixon engaged a private forensic document examiner who confirmed his fears, noting a change in context.

In October 2023, forensic document examiner Emmanuel Kenga informed the court that part of the pages did not match.

In court, there are three Wills and a draft. Lawyer John Kagucia, who prepared the Will and who appeared as a witness in the court last year, produced one original counterpart of the Will.