Club owner Paul Wainaina Boiyo, alias Sheki, who was convicted alongside his five employees for murdering former Juja MP George Thuo 11 years ago, will know his fate on June 21, 2024.
As they await their date with destiny, the widow of the slain legislator is urging trial Judge Roselyn Korir to ensure that the perpetrators of the crime do not go unpunished.
In the victim impact report presented before Justice Korir by a probation officer, Ms Mercy M Kanyange, the widow, Judy Thuo, stated that her late husband did not die a natural death.
"I know there is forgiveness and I know this is a just court…but it is the life and blood of a human being. It shouldn't be that somebody can kill someone and be set free," Judy says.
She confessed that the late Thuo, a former parliamentary chief whip, was a good father, a harmless person, and a responsible husband who loved his brothers and friends.
"On the fateful night, he never returned home. He died at the hands of the people he was with" the widow states.
"The evidence shows he was poisoned. He was not a drunkard. He was a good father, and for the last 10 years, I have come to this court so that we can have this matter come to a closure."
Former Juja MP, the late George Thuo.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
On April 19, 2024, the trial judge convicted Sheki, Thuo’s aide Christopher Lumbazio Andika, alias Lumba, and DJs Andrew Karanja Wainaina and Samuel Kuria Ngugi, alias Visi.
Esther Ndinda Mulinge, a waiter, and a patron, Ruth Watahi Irungu, alias Atlanta, also met the same fate.
In her judgment, the judge found that the prosecution proved its case against the six, saying the evidence was sufficient.
She agreed with doctors' reports, which found that Thuo died due to hemorrhagic gastroenteritis as a result of poisoning.
Doctors identified the poison as Cyhalothrine pesticide, which the judge said would lead to death in five to 10 minutes after ingestion.
Porkies Club Owner Paul Wainaina Boiyo, alias Sheki, (right) and five others convicted for the murder of former Juja MP George Thuo on November 19, 2013.
Photo credit: Richard Munguti | Nation Media Group
The poison was traced in his liver, kidney and on the shirt he was wearing on the fateful night.
"I find the forensic evidence clearly shows Thuo consumed a poison-laced drink at Porkies Club," the judge concluded.
However, the six convicts on Tuesday maintained their innocence, asserting that they had no motive to kill Thuo.
Through their lawyers led by Dr John Khaminwa, they pleaded with the court to release them on bond and hand down a non-custodial sentence as proposed by the probation department.
The defence team clashed with state prosecutor Charles Okeyo over his submission that the maximum penalty be meted out.
Justice Korir overruled the defence and ordered that the convicts to be held in prison until June 21, 2024, when she will render her sentence.
The six had been out on bond, which was cancelled upon their conviction in April 2024 an they were remanded.
