High Court reopens case of man allegedly killed by uncle for Ksh.9M insurance payout

The High Court has granted an application by State prosecutors to reopen the hearing of a case in which Evans Masaku Kasyoki, a former insurance official, was charged with the 2014 murder of his nephew, Eric Makau Musyoka, in order to benefit from a Ksh.9 million compensation scheme.

The case came up before Justice Francis Olel at the Machakos High Court on Wednesday.

Kasyoki’s arrest came on August 14, 2018 just two days after Citizen TV aired a shocking exposé on the mysterious death of 27-year-old Musyoka.

At the time, Musyoka was unemployed and had two life insurance policies: one worth Ksh.1 million with Jubilee Insurance and the other worth Ksh.8 million.

According to the exposé, Kasyoki had taken out the insurance policies in the deceased’s name, listing himself as the beneficiary.

A forensic document examiner at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) stated that both forms exhibited similar handwriting.

Musyoka was found dead just meters away from his home, after which Kasyoki began claiming the insurance payouts from the companies.

Following the exposé, ICEA Lion terminated Kasyoki’s contract as an insurance agent, and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) ordered his arrest.

Kasyoki was subsequently charged with killing his nephew.

In September 2018, Kasyoki was ordered to part with Ksh.3 million or a surety of similar amount to secure his release on bond.

Justice George Odunga ordered that in the event Kasyoki failed to raise the amount, he would stay in custody until October 29, 2018.