The High Court on Thursday, November 21, directed one of the prime suspects in the murder of former Wells Fargo Human Resources Manager Willis Ayieko to undergo mental assessment before the case proceeds.
Appearing before the High Court in Kisumu, the suspect, Victor Ouma Okoth alias Sisco, was not allowed to take plea in the murder charges that he is facing.
According to court documents, he was ordered to undergo mental assessments, to check whether he would be fit to face the charges levelled against him.
''The court directed that he be taken for a mental assessment to ascertain whether he is fit to stand trial,’’ court documents read in part.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions(ODPP) announced that the suspect had been presented to face murder charges alongside others who had not been presented before the court.
''One of the suspects in the murder of Willis Ayieko Onyango, the former Human Resource Manager at Wells Fargo was today arraigned before the Kisumu High Court,’’ ODPP announced in a statement.
''Victor Ouma Okoth alias ‘Sisco’ alias ‘Govins’ is facing charges of murder contrary to section 203 as read with section 204 of the Penal Code, Chapter 63 Laws of Kenya,’’ ODPP added.
According to the ODPP, the suspect will be charged after investigations indicated that he alongside other suspects participated in the murder of Ayieko.
He is alleged to have committed the offences on the night of November 18 and 23, 2024, when the slain manager disappeared before his body was recovered in a stream in Siaya County.
''From the Information filed in Court, Victor Ouma Okoth, jointly with others not yet before the Court is alleged to have murdered the deceased between the night of the 18th and the 23rd November 2024 around Nyamboga Stream at the border of Gem and Khwisero Sub counties within Siaya and Kakamega counties,’’ ODPP stated.
The case is set to continue on December 18, when the suspect will appear before the court for plea-taking after the court is presented with the medical reports from the assessment.
The case will be heard by the Kisumu High Court Judge Lady Justice Roselyn Aburili as the suspect will remain under remand at Kisumu Maximum Prison in Kodiaga.
