Kamiti prison Commandant, five others arraigned over escape of three terror convicts

By , K24 Digital
On Thu, 18 Nov, 2021 14:24 | 2 mins read
Six prison officers arraigned before Kahawa Law Courts. PHOTO/COURTESY

Six Kamiti Maximum Security Prison warders, including Commandant Charles Mutembei Gerrard and his deputy Joseph Longarianyang, have been arraigned at Kahawa Law Courts to answer charges relating to the escape of three terror convicts.

The six, were on Thursday, charged with aiding the convict to escape the prison premises.

During the hearing, their lawyers, Danstan Omari and Cliff Ombeta asked the court to give them 20 minutes break before they resumed the session to review the prosecution files.

Omari also challenged the court's jurisdiction noting that it was wrong for the suspects to be charged at Kahawa where people charged with terror are heard.

The defence lawyer claimed that the suspects were being charged with criminal negligence and not terror hence should be heard either at Milimiani or Kiambi Law Courts.

"Aiding or facilitating the escape of an inmate is a felony, which is not a terror charge," Omari argued.

"The fact that the escapees were terror convicts does not make this a terrorism matter. They had been convicted and their case was closed. The accused alleged offence is a criminal matter that must be dealt with in a criminal court," he added.

Mutembei and his deputy Joseph Loklari Longorianyang were accused of 'ensuring that the condemned block A where the terror convicts were being held was in good condition to prevent the escape.'

On the other hand, the other four who were in charge of manning the CCTV at the prison were charged for failing to 'notice the activities of the convicts who escaped from the lawful custody even though the point of escape is properly covered by the CCTV camera.'

K24 Digital understands that the prosecution will ask for a 30-day detention period of the accused at a Nairobi police station to enable them to conclude investigations into the matter.