By Mwibanda | Published on May 9, 2025, 04:23 EAT
Politician and businessman Philip Aroko has been detained for seven days following a court appearance on Friday, where police linked him to the assassination of Kasipul Kabondo Member of Parliament Charles Were.
Aroko was presented at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) Law Courts at around 3 p.m., just hours after the High Court ordered the Inspector General of Police to produce him. His dramatic appearance came after mounting pressure from his legal team, who had raised concerns about his whereabouts following claims he was held incommunicado after his arrest.
In a miscellaneous application, the State told the court that preliminary investigations had uncovered a network allegedly tying Aroko to the MP’s murder, both financially and logistically.
“The respondent has been directly linked, through communication records and financial trails, to multiple persons of interest,” said the State counsel. “Evidence points to organized meetings held in Homabay, Nairobi, and Nakuru — all of which formed part of the planning that preceded the MP’s death.”
The prosecution revealed that investigators are analysing suspicious financial transactions believed to have originated from Aroko and used to fund the murder. Authorities also noted that some key meeting locations remain undocumented, and several witnesses have yet to be traced or interviewed.
The court was also told that the slain MP had previously reported threats—allegedly made by Aroko—to the DCI regional offices in Nairobi.
“Some of the individuals who can provide key testimony are now living in fear and have not yet come forward,” the State added, arguing for extended custodial time to protect witnesses and complete investigations.
While the prosecution had sought a 30-day detention period, the court allowed a 7-day remand to give investigators time to gather further evidence.
