Two Nigerian men remanded over the murder of a university student, Rita Waeni Muendo, have been released by a Makadara court in Nairobi, Kenya.
The dismembered remains of the 20-year-old woman were found disposed of in rubbish bags in an apartment on TRM Drive, Kasarani. The assailants disappeared with her head, phones and other personal belongings.
Principal Magistrate, Agnes Mwangi released the two on Thursday, February 15, 2024, even as the results of the DNA test are yet to come out.
The court had on January 31, allowed the police to hold William Ovie Opia and Johnbull Asbor for 21 days to collect DNA samples to see if they match that of the deceased.
The police had also requested more time to analyze the sim cards, laptops and phones of the suspect.
When the matter came up in court Thursday, Magistrate Mwangi was informed that the investigations are concluded, and the only pending task is the DNA test.
The pair, through their lawyer Victor Obuli, requested the court to release them and also sought an order for the release of their phones.
While releasing them, the magistrate directed them to report to DCI every Wednesday pending the outcome of the DNA tests.
The police were also ordered to release their phones.
According to investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the two Nigerians were living in the country illegally.
Asbor told the detectives that he lost his passport two years ago.
The suspects were traced by the DCI’s Criminal Research and Intelligence Bureau (CRIB) detectives to an apartment in Ndenderu in Kiambu County where they were picked up.
Constable Benjamin Wangila of Kasarani DCI offices told the court on January 22, that the suspects were living not very far from the area where Rita Waeni’s head was recovered.
A hatchet, butcher’s knife, a national identity card belonging to a Kenyan (name withheld), six mobile phones, three laptops, 10 SIM cards from different telecom services providers and other items were recovered at the house where the two suspects were living.
“The investigation team is seeking to obtain call data records for all the SIM cards and mobile phone numbers recovered from the respondents to ascertain whether they were involved in the murder,” Wangila stated in an affidavit filed in the court.
‘The applicant requires adequate time to escort the respondents to the Government Chemist for extraction of their blood samples for DNA analysis and comparison against the samples that were extracted from the scene of the crime.”
He said the suspects are flight risks since they don’t have a known fixed place of abode.
The matter will be mentioned on March 14, 2024, to confirm the outcome of DNA tests.
Wani was buried in a private ceremony held at her parents’ home on February 5 in Mukimwani Village, Kisau location, Makueni County.
