Kianjokoma brothers urged each other to escape moments before deaths, court told

The High Court was on Thursday told that the Kianjokoma brothers were heard urging each other to escape moments before their deaths, allegedly shouting “tujiokoe” as a police vehicle sped along.

Testifying before Justice Margaret Muigai at the Milimani Law Courts, Chief Inspector Peter Terer said the two brothers, Benson Njiru and Emmanuel Mutura, conspired to jump from the moving police vehicle after encouraging each other to flee.

Terer, a former deputy OCS at Manyatta Police Station in Embu County, told the court that the account was given to him by two suspects who had been arrested alongside the brothers and were seated next to them inside the vehicle on the night of August 1–2, 2021.

“The two brothers told each other ‘tujiokoe’ as the vehicle was moving. They jumped out one after the other,” Terer testified.

The officer said the brothers were among ten people arrested for allegedly violating COVID-19 curfew regulations. Eight of the suspects were later detained and charged at the Embu Law Courts, while another was charged separately for operating a bar outside permitted hours.

Terer told the court he was informed of the brothers’ deaths at about 12.45 am on August 2, 2021, and instructed officers to preserve the scene as investigations commenced. He said six officers who were on duty that night were later arrested and treated as suspects.

However, under cross-examination, Terer admitted that he did not personally witness the incident and relied entirely on information provided by the suspects.

The court also heard that heavy rainfall on the night in question may have hindered visibility inside the police vehicle.

Former OCS Abdalla also testified, confirming he was informed of the incident and proceeded to the scene, though he said he did not closely examine the bodies.

The trial has heard conflicting accounts, with a government pathologist earlier dismissing claims that the brothers died from a fall, instead concluding that both sustained fatal blunt force injuries inconsistent with jumping from a moving vehicle.

The six police officers charged with the murders have denied the charges and are out on bond as the hearing continues.