Suspects in lawyer's killing identified

Persons of interest in the murder of city lawyer Kyalo Mbobu have already been identified with interrogations ongoing, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has revealed.

The CS, who began his six-day Jukwaa la Usalama security tour in the Nyanza region yesterday while speaking in Migori County hinted that detectives were pursuing leads in what he described as a “terrible and painful killing”.

“This is a very sad thing that has happened in our country, akin to what happened to MP Ong’ondo Were. The late Mbobu was my teacher, colleague and friend. Some persons of interest have already been identified, some interrogated and others are going to be sought,” said Murkomen.

Although the motive behind the killing remained unclear, Murkomen assured Kenyans that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) was making progress.

“I am very interested to know what really happened. I am in a position of responsibility, and in constant consultation with the DCI,” he said.

Murkomen spoke as the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) ordered Inspector General (IG) of Police Douglas Kanja to deliver a report within seven days on Mbobu’s assassination.

The lawyer was murdered in a drive-by shooting along Magadi Road on Tuesday evening as he drove home in an attack that shook the nation, coming few months after former Kasipul MP Ong’ondo Were was killed in similar style.

The CS made the remarks as the post-mortem confirmed that the lawyer was shot eight times and died as a result of excessive bleeding and severe injury.

According to the Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor, two bullets were recovered from the body and handed over for ballistic analysis.

“Most of the gunshots came from the right side of the body. There was an injury to the spinal cord and to the neck vessels, which caused massive bleeding. With such injuries, unless you are close to a hospital, it is very difficult to survive,” said Dr Oduor. He explained that tattooing was visible on the skin, an indication that the shooter was very close to the victim.

“We could see tattooing on the chin. That shows the person was near the deceased when firing. Someone shooting you eight times is someone who wanted to kill you,” he said. The autopsy also revealed a mix of graze wounds, entry and exit wounds, and two bullets that lodged in the body.

Exclusive CCTV footage obtained by The Standard offers his last movements before he meet the chilling death.

On Tuesday morning, September 9, at exactly 6:35am, Mbobu was seen checking into his office at Town House on Kaunda Street, dressed in a suit with a red tie and holding a bag. He picked up newspapers where the security guards sit at the first floor, before proceeding to the lift and heading to his office on the Ninth floor.

At 10:10 am, he briefly stepped out, exchanged greetings with a lady in the hallway, then returned to his duties. 
At 5:14 pm, Mbobu was recorded leaving the office, still dressed the same way he came, carrying his bag.

In the lift, he was seen courteously giving way to a man alighting on the ground floor. But outside, a different camera captured a man in a black jacket standing by, backpack slung over his shoulders, making calls. The footage shows that immediately after Mbobu drove out of the parking lot on Kaunda Street, the man also left.

What transpired between that moment and the deadly ambush at the Lang’ata–Magadi Road junction remains a mystery detectives are trying to unravel. At the scene, witnesses reported hearing multiple gunshots as gunmen riding on a motorcycle sprayed Mbobu with bullets.

His lifeless body was later found slumped on the driver’s seat, the car window shattered.

The Law Society of Kenya (LSK), described the murder of Mbobu as a grave attack on the rule of law.

LSK president Faith Odhiambo,  in a statement, mourned a distinguished advocate and scholar who had contributed immensely to the legal profession through practice, teaching and service in quasi-judicial bodies.

“This incident has all the markings of a predetermined assassination. Too often, advocates have been victimized and targeted for the work they do,” said Odhiambo.

The society announced that lawyers across the country will wear a Purple Ribbon March today (Friday) to protest against insecurity and demand swift investigations.

In Nairobi, the procession will start at Milimani Law Courts and end at Vigilance House, where a memorandum will be presented to the Inspector General of Police.

“The effective discharge of constitutional functions by advocates requires an environment free from persecution. We demand that the perpetrators be hunted down and prosecuted. Anything less is an indictment on our security agencies,” she noted.