The Makadara Law Courts in Nairobi has ruled that Priscila Maina, owner of the property short-term lease apartment where 20-year-old university student Rita Waeni Muendo was gruesomely murdered and dismembered, will be held in custody for ten days as police progress with investigations into the case.
Ms Maina and three other suspects – Kelvin Mutiso, Eugene Omondi and Brian Kinoti – arraigned in connection with the murder of Rita in her rental apartment along TRM Drive in Kasarani, Nairobi County will be held at Kasarani Police Station.
The four suspects appeared before the court on Wednesday. Senior Principal Magistrate Justus Kituku of Makadara Law Courts after Corporal Winnie Mworia of Kasarani DCI offices issued an order to have the suspects detained for investigation purposes.
The four suspects will appear in court on January 25, 2024.
The police had Ms Maina arrested for failing to register important details of her tenant as required by law, which would have aided in the tracing of the suspected murderer.
Mr Kituku decried the rising cases of murders in short-stay rental apartments.
“There is no doubt that the nation’s psyche has been gripped by the increased cases of victims being lured and killed in rental apartments. The most recent unfortunate incident is now what is before the court,” the magistrate said.
Following the order to detain Ms Maina, Defence lawyer Eunice Katila opposed the move, saying her client’s only mistake was failing to register the personal details of the client who lodged at the apartment.
The Backstory
A 20-year undergraduate of the Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), Rita Waeni Muendo was killed and dismembered on Sunday by a yet-to-be-identified man who was renting at the Green House Apartments.
The killer had arranged the meeting as a date. When Rita turned up, he held her hostage and demanded Sh500,000 ransom from her father for her release.
However, investigations showed that Rita was killed even before the killer used her phone to text his family to send the ransom.
