A spiked drink, a dead MP, and why Porkies Club owner, 5 employees were convicted in murder of Juja’s George Thuo
Six suspects in the dock over the murder of former Juja MP George Thuo (inset). The High Court on Friday convicted for the murder of former Juja MP 11 years ago.
The High Court on Friday convicted Porkies Club owner Paul Wainaina Boiyo and his five employees for the murder of former Juja MP George Thuo 11 years ago.
Lady Justice Roselyn Korir ruled that Boiyo, Christopher Lumbasio Andika, Andrew Karanja Wainaina, Samuel Kuria Ngugi, Esther Ndinda Mulinge and Ruth Vanessa Irungu were guilty as charged.
"'After analysing all the evidence presented by the prosecution, I find you guilty of murdering Thuo on November 19, 2013," Justice Korir ruled.
The judge said circumstantial evidence presented by the prosecution linked all the accused to Thuo's poisoning.
"Each of the convicts played a role in serving the beer-laced poison that eroded his stomach walls and intestines," Justice Korir ruled.
The judge, who had earlier apologised to the accused, their lawyers and relatives for the delay in delivering the judgment, proceeded to convict them.
She said Thuo, a former Chief Parliamentary Whip, was pronounced dead on arrival at Thika Nursing Home where he was rushed after collapsing at the club.
She said Thuo had complained to Boiyo and Andika that he was feeling hot and sweating after taking some Tusker Light.
He was taken to an office where he removed his vest and then returned to the club, the judge noted.
Before joining Boiyo and Andika, Thuo had called them before leaving his home and told them he was going to the club to watch Formula One.
Received phone call
"Boiyo and Lumbasio knew that Thuo was going to the club. They had received a phone call from him. They had sufficient notice for any plan, good or bad," Justice Korir ruled.
She said Andrew Karanja Wainaina and Samuel Kuria Ngugi, who were his entertainment staff, chose to sit with him (Boiyo) at the same table and never left to ensure that nothing goes wrong.
The judge noted that Esther Ndinda Mulinge, a waiter at the club, served beer to Thuo and others seated with him while Ruth Vanessa Irungu bought a beer and personally took it to the deceased and hugged him.
The court, however, questioned her motive and wondered if the hug was a Judas embrace, referring to it as "kikulacho kinguoni mwako (what harms is within you)".
Justice Korir asked, "Was the hug of the sixth person the Judas kiss... evidence showed that she was a regular customer and she would be given the change even without buying a drink for the MP".
The court was referring to the famous biblical story of how Jesus Christ was betrayed by his disciple Judas Iscariot for 30 pieces of silver, with his identification code to the crucifiers being a kiss on Jesus' face.
"I find that the prosecution has proved its case against each of the accused persons and I hereby convict them accordingly," the judge ruled.
Justice Korir dismissed all the common defences of the accused, who all said "we did not poison Thuo".
Boiyo said Thuo was his long-time friend and "I could not poison him".
A post-mortem report showed that Thuo died of abdominal and intestinal haemorrhage due to erosion of the stomach walls caused by the beer laced with poison.
Analysing the testimony, the judge found that the MP died after drinking the beer at Porkies Club in Thika.
She ruled that the prosecution had proved its case and that traces of poison were found in Thuo's body, then dismissed the defence lawyers' claims that the former MP was poisoned elsewhere and not at Porkies.
The court also noted that Boiyo, Andika, Karanja and Ngugi were sitting with the MP on the material day and that no evidence was presented to the court to show that they had left the table.
According to the judge, the four had the opportunity to tamper with the MP's drink.
The court also dismissed Vanessa's submission that she had bought the MP a drink as a sign of friendship.
Vanessa Irungu had told the court that she went to Porkies to get change for Sh1,000 from the MPesa shop, saw the MP, hugged him and then bought him a drink.
Ndinda, the waitress who allegedly served Thuo, denied poisoning the former parliamentary chief whip.
Vanessa is the one who bought Thuo a beer before he died.
The judge has called for a pre-sentence report on May 3, 2024.
