The entrance to Karen Police Station in Nairobi.
The night of April 24 was expected to be one of the happiest in the lives of the Peponi School A-Level Class of 2026.
Learners, their parents and school staff gathered at Muthaiga Country Club for a leavers’ dinner that evening, marking the end of their school journey.
By 3:50am the following morning, however, the mood had changed dramatically. A police constable at Karen Police Station’s radio room received an alert of a serious accident along Ngong Road. He and a colleague immediately called for an ambulance while heading to the scene.
At the crash site, five Peponi School students were travelling in an Isuzu D-Max pickup truck that rolled several times. Three learners were thrown out during the rollover. Two died instantly. The third sustained severe injuries and has remained in a coma since.
The learner’s family now alleges that post-crash developments suggest an attempt to conceal facts that could lead to prosecution of the vehicle owner, particularly regarding claims that his son, a minor, was driving while allegedly intoxicated.
Through Murgor & Murgor Advocates, the family has written to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) requesting a formal probe.
They say a surviving foreign student refused to record a police statement despite earlier allegedly confirming that the vehicle owner’s son was drunk and speeding at the time.
The father of that student has also written to police stating his son will not give a statement.
The family of the student who is in a coma further faults Peponi School for allegedly denying police access to witnesses who could identify the driver.
They also claim officers from Karen Police Station initially attempted to charge a 34-year-old man with causing death by dangerous driving, which they view as part of a possible cover-up.
At the scene, police found four of the five students involved: two deceased, one in a coma, and one with minor injuries. Two foreign students died on the spot, both from the same country. The critically injured learner is also foreign, from another continent.
Initially, seven students were in the vehicle, but two had been dropped off earlier. Police did not find the driver at the scene.
Parental consent
On April 27, the vehicle owner reported to Karen Police Station accompanied by his 34-year-old nephew. Both recorded statements claiming the nephew was driving.
Last Friday, the father of the comatose student filed a letter at the Kibera Chief Magistrate’s Court requesting a DCI investigation.
Five days after the accident, Karen Police traffic officers moved to court seeking orders to compel Peponi School to allow access to witnesses for statement recording.
The school had earlier said access would only be granted through a court order and parental consent.
By June 5, when court permission was issued, the A-Level class had already completed exams and students had been released.
On Friday, lawyer George Ouma, representing the comatose student’s family, told the Kibera court the matter had been overtaken by events and urged a full DCI probe instead.
The letter to DCI Director Mohammed Amin was also copied to the DPP Renson Ingonga, Attorney-General Dorcas Oduor, the Kibera court and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, citing concerns over handling of the case and possible diplomatic implications.
The Isuzu D-Max, imported in 2018, is registered to a company owned by a prominent businessman whose son was also in the same A-Level class and is a minor not permitted to drink or drive.
Only the businessman’s son and one other foreign student survived with minor injuries.
Mr Ouma told the court that the surviving foreign student identified the businessman’s son as the driver, alleging he was drunk and speeding, with this account given twice on April 25 at 6:30 am and 4:30 pm.
The businessman’s son later sent a text message to a friend’s mother, which the family interprets as an apology and possible admission.
“Good evening Aunty (name withheld), I am so sorry from the bottom of my heart for putting you and your family in this position. (Name withheld) is one of the strongest people I know, and I know he will fight and pull through. Sending love and prayers,” the message read.
In his police statement, he instead claimed his cousin was driving, saying he had fallen asleep and only regained consciousness in hospital.
In a May 18 communication, Peponi School headmaster Durston stated that the businessman’s son was driving at the time. He said seven pupils left Muthaiga Country Club in a private vehicle driven by one of them, intending to be dropped off at home.
The father of the comatose student told police that the vehicle owner and his wife were present at Karen Hospital when he arrived, and later followed the patient to M.P. Shah Hospital, where they handed over a CT scan from Karen Hospital.
The nephew of the vehicle owner, however, claimed the businessman’s son only drove briefly from Muthaiga Country Club to nearby apartments where he lives before handing over control.
Critically injured
On the crash, the nephew said he lost control while swerving to avoid a motorcycle allegedly riding on the wrong side. He said it was raining and the road was wet.
“It was raining and upon reaching Ngong Road near Lenana at a slight bend towards Karen direction, I encountered an oncoming motorcycle…,” his statement reads.
However, a police constable stated that although it had rained earlier, the road was dry at the time and the vehicle appeared to be at very high speed.
The nephew added that a good Samaritan helped him break the windscreen and escape, after which he froze upon seeing the victims. Another motorist later drove him away, fearing retaliation.
He later borrowed a phone in town to call his uncle before going home.
The businessman confirmed he went to Karen Hospital after the accident, but did not find his son there, later learning he had been transferred to Aga Khan Hospital.
On June 26, the Kibera Chief Magistrate’s Court will issue further directions in the case, originally filed by police seeking access to witness statements from students.
One of the two learners who dropped off earlier has also identified the businessman’s son as the driver. The second is expected to testify on June 16.
Police have still not recorded statements from two motorists who witnessed the crash and helped transport the critically injured student to the hospital.
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