Lawyer Cliff Ombeta stunned the court with his explanation in defence of the actions exhibited by his client Former CS Rashid Echesa during the chaotic Matungu by-elections.
Appearing in court on Tuesday, March 9, Ombeta denied that Echesa slapped an IEBC official during the elections as alleged in the charge sheet.
The lawyer claimed that Echesa was only "adjusting his facemask to a proper position" during the fiasco which prompted his arrest.
During the hearing, Ombeta and fellow defense lawyer Evans Ondieki raised issues with an affidavit sworn by investigating officers seeking to detain Echesa for seven days, stating that it did not disclose what the officer was investigating.
They also highlighted their concerns with the rights and liberties of an accused person.
On his part, the officer told the court that Echesa was a habitual offender who had many cases pending in court.
After hearing both arguements, Kiambu chief magistrate Patricia Gichohi released Echesa on a Ksh1 million cash bail or a surety bond of Ksh1 million with the mention of the case slated for April 9.
During the incident which was caught on camera and shared widely, the IEBC official was seen arguing with Echesa who claimed that agents affiliated with the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party were locked out of the polling station.
Echesa, who is allied to the UDA party, also claimed that there was a plot to rig the votes.
The video, which may have to be proved in court, appears to show one of the subjects, in this case Echesa, moving his hand towards the official's face, and even knocking off the mask.
The court heard that Echesa physically engaging the officer, removing his mask, and proceeded to slap the IEBC official.
Musalia Mudavadi's ANC's candidate Peter Nabulindo was declared the winner of the Matungu Constituency by-election after garnering 14,260 votes.
Here is the video:
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