Decision on Tob Cohen’s death inquest postponed as lawyers fail to turn up
A decision on whether or not to proceed with the inquest into the murder of Dutch tycoon Tob Cohen will be made on Monday September 9, 2024.
The new date for the decision was set for September 4, 2024 after all the lawyers involved in the inquest skipped court.
None of the lawyers appeared before Milimani Magistrate Erick Wambo Otieno for the ruling, which was scheduled for 2.30pm.
No reasons were given for the lawyers’ absence.
“I hereby direct prosecuting counsel Virginia Kariuki to liaise with the lawyers who participated in the inquest to attend court next Monday,” Dr Otieno directed.
He said the decision was ready for delivery but the lawyers who participated in the inquest were not in court to receive it.
Now the fate of the inquest hangs in the balance as the scales of justice can tip in any direction.
The court will rule on an application by Cohen’s widow, Sarah Wairimu, to terminate the inquest into the cause of his death.
The inquest was initiated by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in April 2024.
Cohen, who had been reported missing, was discovered in September 2019 in an underground septic tank at his home in Kitisuru, Nairobi.
The DPP’s decision to pursue an inquest came after murder charges against Ms Wairimu and businessman Peter Karanja were dropped in November 2022.
The charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence, which the DPP attributed to incomplete information and investigative shortcomings.
Ms Wairimu then filed an application to discontinue the investigation, claiming that justice could not be done.
However, the DPP and Cohen’s family opposed the application and urged the court to proceed with a full inquest to establish the truth behind the murder.
The initial investigation had led to the arrest of Ms Wairimu and Mr Karanja, but with the murder charges dropped, the inquest became the primary avenue for justice.
The DPP said the investigation was marred by contradictions and incomplete information, making it impossible to mount a successful prosecution in the High Court.
In a letter to the High Court, the DPP emphasised that the inquest was the best way to clarify the process, gather additional information and address potential culpability.
Further complicating matters, Senior Assistant Inspector-General of Police John Gachomo, who was a DCI officer at the time, had sworn an affidavit alleging that he had been misled into implicating Court of Appeal Judge Sankale ole Kantai in the murder.
Mr Gachomo’s affidavits and his claims that he was manipulated by former DCI boss George Kinoti introduced further contradictions into the case, prompting the DPP to seek more time to address the issues.
Ms Wairimu claims she was framed and that powerful politicians closely associated with the former government were involved in Cohen’s death.
She claims these people were trying to take over her husband’s property and disinherit her.
She alleges that the police were involved in covering up the crime.
rmunguti@ke.nationmedia.com
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