The man who oversaw the controversial cremation of a wealthy Kenyan executive of soft drinks maker PepsiCo in New York last year says he is ready to release documents that would clarify the beneficiary of the dead man's estate in court.
This could end a deepening, complex legal dispute that has drawn in a Nairobi lawyer, a Tanzanian, and an official at the American Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Peter Githinji, a 57-year-old pharmacy technician in New Jersey, said he was keeping a number of sensitive documents belonging to William Mulwa Mutilangi, as well as a BMW sports utility vehicle the latter bought in 2017.
"I have some of his stuff, documents which I am keeping, but I will give everything to the court when called upon," he said in an interview with the Nation . "I took the car and kept it in my garage. We thought it would be safe to keep it here. I also protected important documents, but his clothes are still in [Mulwa's] townhouse.
Mulwa's death on October 16, 2023, has sparked a fierce battle over his multi-million shilling estate between his five siblings on one side and Bakari Kisalu Malanda, who claims to be his son, on the other.
Bakari claims he is the rightful heir to Mulwa's properties in Nairobi and Machakos, estimated at Sh500 million, and has hired Nairobi lawyer GK Kahuthu to fight the Mutilangi family. Mulwa's younger brother, Edward Nzesya Mutilangi, denies any blood ties between them.
Mr Nzesya also considers Mr Bakari an imposter who has concocted a scheme to get rich quickly and has hired New York-based lawyer Japheth Matemu to gain control of Mulwa's assets in the United States.
Web of mystery over William Mulwa Mutilangi death and assets.
Photo credit: Nation Media Group
On Monday, Matemu filed a petition in Westchester Surrogate's Court asking Judge Brandon Sall to declare Nzesya the administrator or executor of his brother's estate in the United States, which he estimates at $500,000.
“I took his belongings from the hospital, and then went to the funeral home, spoke to the funeral home director, and relayed what lawyer Kahuthu had said to me,” said Githinji. “It took five more days … waiting for Kahuthu and Bakari to decide what to do with the body. Then he asked me to go to the funeral home and have the body cremated.”
From left: Mutilangi siblings Edward, Vincent and William during their mother's funeral on November 3, 2013. William died in the US on October 16, 2023. A Tanzanian man claiming to be his son has sought control over William's assets in Kenya and the US. Family archives
Photo credit: Pool
Githinji claims that Mulwa and his siblings were not on talking terms, so they didn't know about their brother's illness. But in an earlier interview with the Sunday Nation , the Pepsi executive's family was in regular contact and visited the village with no sign of bad blood between them. Githinji wasn't clear whether Mulwa had left a Will, but said a DNA test should be submitted to the Surrogate's Court to establish whether Bakari is Mulwa's legitimate son.
He denied allegations of foul play in Mulwa's death, saying his innocence would be proved in court when Mulwa's estate goes for probate, a legal process to determine the existence and validity of a Will.
During the process, each Will, or in some cases competing Wills, must be proved to the satisfaction of the presiding judge that it is the "last Will and testament" of the deceased and that the deceased was in his or her right mind at the time of making the Will and was not influenced by anyone.
Githinji said he was under pressure because he was being vilified by many people and the media, who have no details about the matter, and added that his family now feels threatened.
“They are jeopardising my job and threatening me,” he added. “The embassy official David Gacheru was calling me a lot, but I could not talk to them because the government is now involved, but this is not a government case. This is a civil matter between the Mutilangi family and his son Bakari.”
When the Nation recently contacted Gacheru, he declined to talk, saying this is not the right time to be involved. “As [a] government employee I have been advised against any interview on the matter now under investigation,” said Gacheru, who has consulted with Mulwa’s siblings and the funeral home still holding his ashes.
Githinji said he was prevented by a set of US privacy laws called HIPAA—Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act—from releasing any information about Mulwa’s medical or personal records, but he will comply with any demand for documents from a court of competent jurisdiction.
In Nairobi, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations is yet to issue any statement on the progress of investigations into a complaint filed by Mr Mulwa’s brothers.
On Wednesday, Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin told the Nation he would find out the status of investigations and give us an update. But by the time of going to press, Mr Amin had not responded to our further requests for a status update.
