A matatu tout appeared in court to face murder charges after allegedly slashing his fellow tout with a panga in Embakasi, Nairobi.
The tout was reported to have slashed the deceased with a panga at Cabanas stage in Embakasi South after the two were involved in arguments over passengers.
The incident occurred in 2019 near Rapid Kate Logistics, where the accused reportedly drew a machete from underneath his clothing following a heated argument.
The case has been ongoing in court since then, with delays in delivering the judgment attributed to judicial transfers of the judge assigned to the case.
''The Director of Public Prosecutions informs the High Court that on July 21, 2019, at Cabanas Stage along Mombasa Road near Rapid Kate Logistics, Embakasi Sub-County within Nairobi County the accused murdered Gidraph Mwangi Maroro,'' the court documents read in part.
''The witness said that the accused then retrieved a panga from his clothing and cut the deceased on the neck. When the deceased fell, he cut him again on the cheeks. The witness ran away when he was threatened by the accused.''
Justice Kanyi Kimondo of the High Court while presiding over the case, ruled that there was sufficient direct evidence linking the accused to the homicide.
Consequently, the judge ruled that the accused would now face the defence, having established that he had a case to answer following a review of evidence submitted by the state witnesses.
''My findings are as follows. It bears repeating that the accused is still deemed innocent at this stage. Furthermore, the inquiry at this juncture is merely to establish if a prima facie case has been made out requiring a rebuttal from the accused,'' Justice Kimondo ruled.
''Accordingly, under the provisions of section 306 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code, I now place the accused on his defence.''
The matatu sector has become a major challenge for authorities due to the unruly behaviour exhibited by some of its operators.
On December 19, the High Court ordered a popular Nairobi public service vehicle (PSV) Sacco, Metro Trans, to pay over Ksh1 million to the family of a deceased man who was knocked down by one of the buses in Mwiki, Kasarani.
In the ruling delivered at the High Court, Milimani Civil Division, on Wednesday, December 18, Justice Hellen Namisi directed that the family of the deceased be paid Ksh1,361,710.
The deceased, Osethios Mutethia Nthiga, was a butchery attendant at Mwiki at the time of his death.
''At the time of his death, the Deceased was aged 27 years and employed as a Butcher. He was the sole breadwinner for his young family, earning approximately Ksh700 per day,'' court documents read in part.
