A Mombasa court let eight KDF soldiers go free on bond. They were arrested for their suspected involvement in the disappearance of some meth from a huge 8.2 billion shilling haul. That narcotics seizure happened in the Indian Ocean back in October. The senior resident magistrate, Gladys Ollimo, ruled the state had no good reason to keep holding them without filing formal charges.
The suspects, all from the Kenya Navy, each got a 500,000 shilling bond with a similar cash bail option. They must give up their passports, check in with the investigating officer, and get court permission for any international travel. The prosecution wanted them held longer, saying they were waiting for a report from the Government Chemist to confirm the seized substance. The investigating officer, Isaac Njoroge, claimed the file was ready, but charges needed that analyst report, expected next month.
The magistrate disagreed, stating a court is not a holding cell for finished investigations. She found no sufficient grounds for continued detention. The defense lawyers argued successfully that the state was just stalling, with no legal basis to extend custody after completing their probe. The soldiers, named as Duke Nyamwaya, Juma Mwinyifaki, Michael Kariuki, Elijah Mbogo, James Ekiru, Abdulrehman Salad, and Abdirahman Abdi, were reportedly dismissed by the KDF before being handed to the Anti-Narcotics Police. They were part of the team that intercepted the dhow MV Mashallah, which was carrying over a thousand kilograms of meth labeled as coffee.
The suspects, all from the Kenya Navy, each got a 500,000 shilling bond with a similar cash bail option. They must give up their passports, check in with the investigating officer, and get court permission for any international travel. The prosecution wanted them held longer, saying they were waiting for a report from the Government Chemist to confirm the seized substance. The investigating officer, Isaac Njoroge, claimed the file was ready, but charges needed that analyst report, expected next month.
The magistrate disagreed, stating a court is not a holding cell for finished investigations. She found no sufficient grounds for continued detention. The defense lawyers argued successfully that the state was just stalling, with no legal basis to extend custody after completing their probe. The soldiers, named as Duke Nyamwaya, Juma Mwinyifaki, Michael Kariuki, Elijah Mbogo, James Ekiru, Abdulrehman Salad, and Abdirahman Abdi, were reportedly dismissed by the KDF before being handed to the Anti-Narcotics Police. They were part of the team that intercepted the dhow MV Mashallah, which was carrying over a thousand kilograms of meth labeled as coffee.
