The High Court in Nyamira has acquitted four people charged with murdering a Kenyan-American couple, the Eastleigh Voice reported. Justice Theresa Cherere freed Ezekiel Mogeni Migiro, Peris Ondara, Dennis Ondara Clement and Peter Njoroge Kirika. Each faced two counts of murder. The court ordered their release unless they are lawfully held for other reasons.
The victims were Edward Morema Nyagechi and his wife, Grace Mong'ina Morema, who lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They were on holiday in Kenya when they were killed, Capital FM reported via AllAfrica. The killings took place between the night of March 20 and the early hours of March 21, 2023. Neighbours raised the alarm when the couple failed to appear for their usual morning routine. Postmortem examinations found that Edward had head injuries and stab wounds. Grace had been strangled.
Justice Cherere ruled that the prosecution had proved the couple were unlawfully killed with malice aforethought. However, it failed to prove that any of the four took part. "The cumulative circumstantial evidence raised suspicion but did not form a complete chain pointing to the guilt of any accused person," the judge said, according to the Eastleigh Voice.
The prosecution argued that Migiro sought revenge after his earlier conviction for stealing $2,000 from the couple's daughter. A househelp, Sylvia Barongo Nyamai, said she saw him at the home shortly before the bodies were found. The judge found her identification unreliable, citing darkness, rain and a power blackout at the time.
Ondara was accused of having a motive tied to a succession dispute over her late husband, Professor Zachary Mosoti. The court said the disputes and alleged threats did not show she took part. Phone records linked Clement to the scene. But the judge said cell-site data could not place him at the homestead. A gun and ammunition found when he was arrested were not linked to the killings.
Kirika was linked to KSh 62,000 moved from the couple's accounts to a phone number registered in another person's name. The court found the prosecution had not proved he controlled the number. Nor did it prove he was the man filmed withdrawing cash at an ATM. DNA tests by Government Analyst Henry Kiptoo Sang matched blood stains on recovered items to the couple, but not to any of the accused.
Prosecutor Chirchir, a Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, had asked the court to find that the four acted with a common intention. Defence lawyer Nyaberi argued that the case rested on suspicion, not proof. The judge ruled that common intention was not established. She said that suspicion, however strong, cannot replace proof beyond reasonable doubt.