Three suspects held over the KCB sh. 50m Heist denied bail by a Thika Court.
Three men, among them two brothers, were yesterday arraigned
in a Thika court over the theft of Sh. 52.6 million from the Kenya Commercial
Bank, Thika branch last week.
Halford Munene Murakaru (32), his brother Charles Mwangi
Murakaru (30) and Julius Ndung’u Wainaina (30), appeared before Thika Chief
Magistrate Teresiah W. Murigi and denied two counts of breaking into the bank,
stealing and handling stolen cash.
According to the charges, the trio, on different dates
between November 18th and 20th, broke into the KCB Thika
branch through an underground tunnel and stole Ksh. 52,650,000 and 3,660 Euros.
In the second count, the accused are said to have on
November 25th, illegally handled Ksh. 17,135,000, 3,660 Euros, 340
pound sterling, 1,311 US dollars 271,000 Tanzanian shillings, 95
Australian dollars, 40 SA Rand and 20,000 Ugandan shillings at Joyland Estate
of Juja Town.
The three are said to have been arrested on Saturday at
Marurui in Kasarani, Nairobi, following a tip off to the police.
They denied the charges and were remanded them until
November 30 when a determination on whether they will be released on bond will
be made.
This was after the prosecution, led by State Counsel Stella
Oyagi, successfully applied to have them detained on grounds that they were
likely to interfere with the case if released and that they were likely to
flee.
Ms. Oyagi said reliable reports indicated that before their
arrest, they were planning to leave the country.
“The accused persons are likely to flee the country and they
are also likely to interfere with investigations or destroy evidence if granted
bond at this time,” the prosecutor said, adding that the investigating officer
had sworn an affidavit stating he had information to the effect that the three
were likely to abscond.
The accused were being represented by Advocate Zacky Odegi
who sent a plea to have them released on bond, having spent the whole weekend
in custody.
Court proceedings were briefly adjourned immediately the suspects
brought before court at 12.52 pm after one of them pleaded to be allowed some
time to get a lawyer. His plea was accepted and the session resumed at 2.25 pm.
While applying for bond Odegi said his clients were arrested
by police from their Thika residence on Saturday and.
Graduates.
Munene is said to be a graduate with a bachelor’s degree in
agricultural engineering from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and
Technology while Ndung’u graduated with a degree in electrical and electronics
engineering from the University of Nairobi.
Mwangi declined to disclose to the police the university he
went to, although he is a holder of a bachelor’s degree in agricultural
engineering, and, together with his brother, they are reported to have studied
at Nyeri High School where they scored As.
Police said the three were behind the leasing of a stall in
a commercial premises next to the bank, ostensibly to run a bookshop, although
there is a mastermind and the officers said they are following leads that will
lead to his arrest.
On Monday last week, Thika KCB management discovered that
thugs had dug a 30-meter tunnel into the vault and made away with over Sh. 50
million in what appeared like a movie script.
The thieves had dug the tunnel from an adjacent commercial
building which is right across the Thika police station but no one had noticed
any suspicious activity.
(Related story: How crafty thieves stole Sh. 50m from KCB Thika Branch)
However, on last Saturday, police raided a rented house at Joyland area in Juja and recovered the money said to have been stashed in bags and a plastic drum. Detectives privy to the investigations said that a lady let one of the units and later brought some of the items which may have included the money into the house.
However, on last Saturday, police raided a rented house at Joyland area in Juja and recovered the money said to have been stashed in bags and a plastic drum. Detectives privy to the investigations said that a lady let one of the units and later brought some of the items which may have included the money into the house.
The arrest of the three brings to five the number of
suspects arrested in connection with the heist.
The caretaker and the custodian of the keys to the
commercial premises where the suspects had leased a stall were arrested and
arraigned in court last week and the police were allowed to continue detaining
them to facilitate investigations.
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