Missing Indians: Eight police officers released on Sh500,000 bond each

The accused were officers attached to the now-disbanded Special Service Unit. [File, Standard]

Eight police officers accused of abducting two Indian nationals in Nairobi in July 2022 have been released on Sh500,000 personal bond.

Kahawa Law Courts Chief Magistrate Diana Mochache on Thursday, December 1 asked the accused to honour summons by investigative agencies and refrain from interfering with witnesses.

The ninth accused person in the case was released earlier, on November 10.

Magistrate Mochache asked the prosecution and the defense team to agree on a date when DNA samples of the suspects can be taken for analysis at the government chemist.

On Wednesday, November 30, a standoff ensued when officers from the Internal Affairs Unit sought to get DNA samples from the suspects, who were being held in custody at Capitol Hill, Kilimani and Kileleshwa police stations.

The accused persons refused to have their samples taken, saying the court had directed that the analysis be done at the government chemist, and not at the DCI’s forensic laboratory.

Four more officers, arrested recently over the missing Indians and a Kenyan taxi driver, were also released on Sh500,000 personal bond each.

The court said should any of the suspects breach the bond terms, they’ll be detained for a minimum of 42 days.

The matter will be mentioned on January 16, 2023.

The missing Indians were part of an IT team brought into the country to help UDA candidate William Ruto strategise ahead of the August 9, 2022 presidential election.

They were abducted in late July alongside their driver near Ole Sereni Hotel in Nairobi.