Yassin Moyo murder case: Emotional family members testify against police officer Duncan Ndiema

A total of six witnesses testified this week in the ongoing murder trial of police officer Duncan Ndiema, alias Champe, who was charged with the fatal shooting of a 13-year-old boy in Huruma, Nairobi, during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

Yassin Moyo, a Standard Eight student at Ndururuno Primary School, was shot while standing on the balcony of his family's apartment on March 30, as he attempted to catch a glimpse of police officers enforcing the nationwide dusk-to-dawn curfew imposed by the State to mitigate the spread of the disease.

He was subsequently rushed to the Mama Lucy Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The then Nairobi County Commander Philip Ndolo however claimed that the boy was accidentally hit by a ricocheting bullet as police attempted to disperse a gang who had defied the curfew directive.

"The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) presented six witnesses from September 17th to 19th 2024. These include Yasin’s two sisters, his mother, father, and a neighbour," the ODPP said in an X statement on Friday.

The witnesses shared heartfelt testimonies, recounting the heartbreaking moment when the boy cried out to his mother, saying he had been shot. Their accounts also captured the family's desperate and unsuccessful efforts to save him.

"The emotional weight of these testimonies was palpable in the courtroom. The proceedings were interrupted several times to allow the family members to compose themselves, as their grief overwhelmed those present," said the ODPP.

The case has been scheduled for further hearings on for May 29, July 8, 15 and 24, next year.

Ndiema is currently out on a Ksh.1 million bail on the condition that he does not interfere with witnesses in the trial.

The police officer was  granted the cash bail on July 8, 2020, two weeks after he pleaded not guilty to the minor's murder. This came after the ODPP launched investigations into the incident. 

The court directed Ndiema to provide two contacts who should be close relatives and not to interfere with witnesses lined up in the case.

Prior to this, Ndiema had appeared before High Court Judge Luka Kimaru on June 23, where he was charged with the boy's murder.

He pleaded not guilty and was remanded at Capitol Hill Police Station pending the hearing of his bail application.

The High Court had earlier deferred his plea taking after his lawyer said that the officer had been admitted to the Mbagathi Hospital pending the results of a Covid-19 test.

The investigating officer however told the court that the accused never visited the said hospital but was in Uthiru and Ndumbuini areas, 15 kilometres from the said hospital.