Former TV anchor Louis Otieno to testify in murder inquest
An inquest into the death of Careen Chepchumba, a former employee of Kenya power and Lighting company, who died mysteriously four years ago is set to commence next month.
Former television personality Louis Otieno, who denied involvement in her death, is expected to testify in the inquest.
Ms Chepchumba, 26, was found lying dead on her bed at Santonia Court, off Kirichwa Road in Kilimani, Nairobi, on February 14, 2012.
Even though the file was opened in 2012, the inquest has delayed because key witnesses, including the woman’s parents, had not availed themselves in court.
On Thursday, the parents appeared before Kibera Resident Magistrate Charles Ondieki and said that they had decided to move on since the police did not have a suspect in the case.
However, the magistrate told them that the inquest was not a criminal or a civil case, where one can be allowed to withdraw at will.
“Be patient and allow the inquest to proceed so that the court can determine exactly what happened through the testimonies that will be presented in court,” Mr Ondieki said.
Police had initially concluded that Ms Chepchumba had committed suicide, but postmortem by a
government pathologist conducted a few days later concluded that the victim had been strangled.
During their investigations, police interviewed more than 15 witnesses, including Mr Louis Otieno who was questioned more than five times and whose DNA was taken to try and match it with samples collected at Ms Chepchumba’s home and body.
The deceased parents will be given priority to give their testimony on the first date. On the second day four witnesses will testify including Mr Otieno.
The security guards who were on duty at the time of the incident are also expected to testy in the inquest.
