A key suspect in the gruesome murder of three women abducted from Eastleigh, Nairobi, will remain in custody for 21 days to allow detectives to complete their investigations.
Makadara Senior Principal Magistrate Mary Njagi ordered that Hashim Dagane Muhumed be held at Ruaraka Police Station until December 2, 2024, when police will produce him in court for further directions.
The suspect, who was arrested by DCI officers on November 3, 2024, and subsequently detained at Kamukunji Police Station, was arrested following a tip-off from members of the public.
He is investigated for the brutal murders of Dahabo Daud Said, Musayba Abdi Mohamed and Amina Abdirashid Dahir.
Ms Njagi granted the 21-day detention following a request by Police Sergeant Mohammed Hassan, who said the investigation was complex.
He said detectives needed to unravel the mysterious killings of the three women, who were relatives.
In the case of Dahabo Daud Said, Sgt Hassan said she was last seen leaving her residence at Eastleigh Section III on October 21, 2024, at about 8pm.
Sgt Hassan told the court that Dahabo was picked up by a car the next day (October 22). Her badly mutilated body with multiple stab wounds and chopped palms was found lying about 1.5 kilometres off Mombasa Road from Kyumbi junction.
The magistrate further heard that Musyaba was last seen alive on October 22, 2024, at about 0100 hours when she left her Eastleigh residence with Amina Abdirash Dahir and later that day her lifeless body was found dumped near Bahati Primary School fence.
The body was badly mutilated and there were signs that the victim had been sexually assaulted before she was killed.
Amina's lifeless body was discovered later that day dumped along Mwambao Road in Parklands within Nairobi City.
Ms Njagi heard that the three deceased women were picked up from their residences by the same vehicle, a Nissan Note registration number KDQ 718Y, driven by Dagane.
The said vehicle was abandoned at Ena Express Yard in Wakulima area within Nairobi and the owner was identified as Hashim Dagane Muhumed.
The court also heard that Dagane was in constant communication with the deceased and "that he picked them up at different intervals on the nights of October 21 and 22, 2024, before they were later found brutally murdered".
The investigating officer urged the court to allow the police to keep him in custody to allow them to complete the investigation, which includes analysis of call data, forensic examinations and taking statements from witnesses.
"The police have an enormous task to unravel this murder syndicate," Sgt. Hassan said.
Ms Njagi, who granted the request to detain Dagane, said police needed ample time to piece together all the evidence before filing murder charges against the suspect.
"The police have established that they have a prima facie case to warrant the detention of the suspect for a period of 21 days to enable them to investigate the mysterious murders of the three women," Ms Njagi ruled.
"I hereby grant the police request to remand you in their custody for 21 days and this matter will be mentioned on December 2, 2024, for further directions," Ms Njagi ruled.
Dagane, whose images were captured by a CCTV camera as he entered and exited a building, was escorted to the Makadara Law Courts by DCI detectives in civilian clothes.
