A student initially linked to the deadly Utumishi Girls High School dormitory fire has been cleared by investigators and released, leaving eight minors to face murder charges over a tragedy that claimed the lives of 16 learners.
The decision was made on Wednesday after the prosecution informed a Naivasha court that investigations had found no sufficient evidence connecting one of the nine students to the May 26 fire at the Gilgil-based school. The remaining eight suspects are now expected to be arraigned before the High Court in Nairobi on Friday, June 26, to answer to 16 counts of murder.
State Counsel Emma Bosire told the court that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had completed its investigations and was prepared to proceed with charges against the eight students.
Following the application by the prosecution, Chief Magistrate Abdulqadir Ramathan ordered the immediate release of the ninth suspect and directed that she be reunited with her parents or guardians.
"The ninth respondent shall be released from custody and be handed over to her parents or guardians," he ordered.
The prosecution also sought to have the matter handled in Nairobi instead of Naivasha, citing concerns over the safety of the accused students.
Bosire told the court that the suspects had been in custody for 21 days and that tensions surrounding the case remained high, making it difficult to guarantee their security if proceedings continued in Naivasha.
"In an affidavit, we are seeking that the eight suspects be charged with murder in the High Court in Nairobi, where their security is guaranteed," Bosire noted.
She further said intelligence reports had pointed to growing hostility towards the minors and requested that they be held at the Nairobi Children's Remand Home in Kabete.
Court prosecutor Joseck Abwajo backed the application, arguing that the court had the authority to facilitate the transfer despite opposition from the defence.
"The defence is opposed to an application to transfer the matter to Nairobi, but at the moment there is no case number or file, and this court has the powers to transfer this matter," Abwajo stated.
The request, however, faced resistance from advocate Mbugua Macharia, who appeared for the victims.
Macharia argued that the move was not supported by the law, maintaining that only the High Court has the authority to transfer criminal proceedings from one court station to another.
He further told the court that there was no justification for moving the case, insisting that the High Court in Naivasha was fully capable of hearing the matter.
"The application to transfer the case to Nairobi is unfair to both the parents and the accused, as we have a capable High Court in Naivasha," Macharia noted.
Despite the objections, the court directed that the case proceed in Nairobi, where the eight students are set to be formally charged over one of the deadliest school fire incidents in recent years.