A Kibera court has ordered the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and Nairobi Women's Hospital to submit detailed medical records of the prime suspect in a murder committed at the KNH on Thursday, July 17.
The prime suspect was presented at the Kibera Law Courts on Monday, July 21, where Principal Magistrate Daisy Mutahi directed that records from the two hospitals be produced in court before Thursday, July 24.
During the hearing, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) requested the court to allow police to detain the suspect for 21 more days to allow for completion of investigations.
“We are requesting for 21 days as the respondent has been a patient at KNH and currently has no place of abode. If released, he is likely to abscond, and we will not be able to trace him,” the court was told by the prosecution.
Further, the ODPP also requested a mental assessment of the suspect, since he is believed to have been involved in other incidents at the KNH.
“We are also apprehensive of his mental state, as he is believed to have been involved in several incidents at Kenyatta National Hospital. We require a secure facility to hold him, considering he has been identified as a person of interest in two murder cases.”
The suspect, identified only as Kalombotole, is believed to have been a long-term patient at KNH and is reportedly homeless.
According to hospital records, his first admission at KNH dates back to 2022, and he has been in and out of the facility for treatment since then.
Detectives strongly believe the suspect may have exploited his patient status to carry out the killings within the hospital environment.
Despite prosecution arguing that the suspect would likely interfere with investigations and intimidate key witnesses if released, the Principal Magistrate was adamant it would be proper to grant the 21-day detention of the suspect once Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and Nairobi Women's Hospital submitted the medical records.
The suspect is connected to the death of 40-year-old Gilbert Kinyua, who was killed in Ward 7C during the night of February 6–7 this year.
Following the February incident, a case file was compiled and submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) for further action.
