Win for Gicheru as ICC rejects witness evidence

**Lawyer Paul Gicheru.** [File, Standard]

International Criminal Court (ICC) has rejected prosecutor’s plea to admit evidence of a witness in the case against lawyer Paul Gicheru.

In a decision which is a score for Gicheru, Trial Chamber III judge Maria Samba ruled that deputy prosecutor James Stewart had not convinced the court that it was impossible to have witness 0495 to testify.

This witness was to testify against Deputy President William Ruto and radio journalist Joshua Sang but he recanted his testimony.

The prosecution claimed that he is unwilling to participate in Gicheru’s trial.

However, Justice Samba found that the prosecution can ask the court to request Kenya to locate and have him appear in court.

“In respect of whether P-0495 has failed to attend in the present case, the Chamber finds that the prosecution has not used all reasonable efforts at its disposal to obtain P-0495’s attendance, this includes requesting summons for his attendance,” ruled Justice Samba.

The witness was expected to link the DP to the Turbo clashes but recanted his evidence.

He is among those who are claimed to have received bribes and influenced others, leading to the collapse of Ruto and Sang’s case.

The prosecution asked the Trial Chamber to admit the witness’ evidence without requiring him to appear in court to testify against Gicheru.

They claimed that even after meeting with him, he declined to co-operate with the prosecution or appear in court.

But the lawyer argued that the prosecution cannot explain or prove that the witness is unwilling to testify or appear in court.

Initially, the witness was missing, but he met with the ICC prosecutors last month.

The prosecution claimed he initially agreed to testify but his lawyer later informed the prosecutor that he was no longer interested in the case or appearing in court.

“The OTP offers no justification for requesting Trial Chamber III to risk turning the trial proceedings into a sham imitation of the truth-seeking process – a pretense trial devoid of subjecting accusatory witnesses of questionable repute and evidence to confrontation, thus inescapably saddling Mr Gicheru, who is presumed innocent, with the impermissible onus of having to rebut P-0495’s untested claims of having corruptly influenced him,” argues Gicheru.

The witness allegedly admitted to having been offered a Sh2.5 million bribe by P-0800.

According to Stewart, the witness claimed that he did not know any lawyer by the name of Gicheru and that he never received any money in order to withdraw as a witness.

But the prosecutor argued that the witness received a call from P-0800 and later recanted his evidence.