Eldoret court lowers looting suspect's Ksh.10M bond to Ksh.200K cash bail

An Eldoret court has reviewed the cash bail of Jonathan Paul Mutua, a looting suspect arrested during anti-tax protests in the town.

When the suspect appeared in court on Tuesday, the court initially issued him a Ksh.10 million bond without the option of cash bail.

The terms sparked outrage online, prompting the intervention of Embakasi East MP Babu Owino who dispatched his lawyer Aseso Omollo to take over the case and seek a review of the bond terms.

The court, upon review on Wednesday, released the suspect on a cash bail of Ksh.200,000, with the option of a Ksh.150,000 bond. 

According to court papers, the review came after the cost of the items reportedly stolen was considered.

Previously, Mutua had been granted a bond of Ksh.10 million without a cash bail alternative for allegedly stealing items during the recent anti-tax protests in Eldoret.

He was accused of breaking into the Baniyas Club Square owned by Fredrick Kamau and stealing items valued at Ksh.37,093,690. 

The items stolen included television screens, computers, printers, gas cylinders, chairs, a restaurant couch, utensils, food, charcoal, 181 kilogrammes of beef steak, 17 bags of charcoal and 12 bags of potatoes.

Mutua, 29, however denied the charges when he appeared before Eldoret Chief Magistrate Cherono Kesse.

The case has been set for mention on July 15, 2024.