The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a warning to Kenyan lawyer Paul Gicheru after he was interviewed by a Kenyan newspaper on February 4.
Gicheru had been released on February 1 under strict conditions which the ICC has now canceled his interim release for violating the restrictions given to him.
"The chamber notes that having arrived in Kenya on February 1, Gicheru gave an interview on February 4 to a Kenyan newspaper. Therein, he made statements tangent to the current proceedings," said part of a statement by Judge Twine Adelaide Sophie Alapini Gansou.
"The prohibition on making any statement, social media post or communication with the media covers all actions which directly or indirectly discuss the merits of the case, " said the judge.
"For these reasons, the chamber hereby recalls the conditions set out in the interim release decision and that they have to be adhered to at all times, "she added.
Paul Gicheru surrendered to the ICC in 2020 to clear his name after failing to honor court summons issued in 2015. He was on February 1 set free following a cooperation deal with the ICC, where he requested release conditions as per Article 60(2) of the Rome Statute.
Gicheru was accused of interfering with witnesses in Deputy President William Ruto and Joshua Arap Sang’s cases.
The conditions set for the lawyer’s release by the ICC were that he was required to deposit Ksh 1 million to the ICC Registrar in the form of cash or bank order, to comply with all orders issued in his case and surrender himself immediately to the relevant authorities if required by the trial chamber.
He was also warned against hampering or jeopardizing the prosecution or legal proceedings and not to participate, expressly or indirectly, in any conduct which is forbidden by Article 70 of the Statute.
The conditions also stated that Gicheru is not allowed to change his residential location from what he provided to the court and that he will only be allowed to visit two countries abroad; the Netherlands and a second country that was redacted.
Travel to the two countries will have to be cleared by the ICC seven days in advance after disclosing the details of the trip, where he will reside and contact address.
In order to travel to a country, not on the approved list, the decision requires Gicheru to give the court a 14-day notice with the decision made on such notice depending on whether there is a good cause shown.
He would also be required to report once a week to the ICC Registrar, including through the use of video conferencing technology.
