Why DPP wants six KWS rangers held responsible for abduction of Brian Odhiambo

After close to a year, the prosecution in the case into the disappearance of missing Nakuru Fisherman Brian Odhiambo have rested their case and have now left the ball to the court to decide the fate of the six Kenya Wildlife rangers.

In their case the prosecution sought to prove that the rangers were responsible for Brian Odhiambo’s disappearance.

Through its 10 witnesses, the prosecution presented a timeline of events showing how the officers manhandled the 31-year-old who had tried to escape from the pak before whisking him away.

According to them, the rangers picked Brian at Manyani area, beating him up before bundling him onto a ladcruiser into the park.

Prosecution witness Agnes Oluoch, a resident in Manyani, who told the court of how she saw a Brian Odhiambo being pursued by KWS rangers outside the park and, on catching up with him, they assaulted him and dragged him back into the park.

Agnes told the court Brian only had black shorts on at the time he was being dragged back into the park.
The Officer Commanding Station, Bondeni Police Station, Meshack Mwangangi, while giving testimony, said that on January 18, they only took nine people into custody.
He said that no entry in the name Brian Odhiambo was made on that day, meaning that he had not been brought to their station.

Carlos Otieno, the brother of Brian, and Elizabeth Auma both witnessed seeing their kin being thrown in the back of a car, and that was the last they ever saw him.

Alex Maina, testified virtually, from Nyandarua Prison, where he is currently serving a sentence after being convicted for trespassing into a protected area on the said date.

He positively identified Brian Odhiambo as the man who was in the back of a Land Cruiser, and he narrated how one of the rangers said, “afande huyu amekataa,” referring to Brian Odhiambo, which according to Alex meant that Brian Odhiambo had lost his life.

According to Alex, that was the last time he saw Brian.

The investigating officer, Justus Muhuri, also gave his reasons as to why he narrowed down to the six accused. He stated that Senior Sergeant Francis Wachira was the one who directed the officers to arrest Brian.

Alexander Lorogoi and Isaac Ochieng were the ones who arrested him, and they were assisted by Michael Wabukala and Evans Kimaiyo, and they dragged the victim back to the national park.
He says that having taken him, they abducted Brian with the intention to confine him.

in the course of trial, there were highlight moments such as when human rights activists chanted and sang the national anthem after the hearing, Alvy Aoko, the wife to Brian, occasionally leaving the courtroom to sob after hearing the terrifying witness accounts of what happened to her husband, and the courtroom that was filled to capacity throughout the court sessions, signifying the public interest the case had gathered.

The defense, on their part, tried to poke holes in the prosecution’s case by citing contradictions that were in earlier recorded statements and the testimonies given in court.

Additionally, the defense tried to deconstruct the fact that the person who is believed to have been lying on the vehicle was not Brian Odhiambo because they have not carried out a DNA test.

The matter will come up on March 3 for a ruling to determine whether the six have a case to answer.

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