The murder trial of former Kenya and Gor Mahia player, Collins Okoth Ougo, alias Gatuso, began at the Milimani High Court in Nairobi on Wednesday with harrowing testimony from the parents of the two-year-old girl he is accused of killing.
Alex Wanga Adhola and Beatrice Awuor, who had separated, told the court that their daughter was alone in the house on the fateful night she was allegedly raped and murdered.
Justice Alexander Muteti heard that the victim, Scuvian Muyer, was thrown from the second floor of the building where she lived with her mother in Lucky Summer Estate. A knife believed to have been used to tamper with the lock of the house was later found at the window of Okoth’s residence.
The court was told that Awuor and Alex were living apart—Awuor in Lucky Summer and Alex in Huruma Estate.
Alex told the court that a pathologist at the City Mortuary informed him the child had been raped before being killed, and that her head injuries were consistent with a fall from a high point.
However, defence lawyers Geoffrey Omenke and Evans Oduor, representing Okoth, challenged the rape allegation and argued that the pathologist’s report cites head injuries as the cause of death.
“Do not put that issue on the cause of death to the witness; wait for the doctor and put it to him,” Justice Muteti instructed Omenke during cross-examination.
Awuor, the first to testify, said she left her daughter asleep at 1am on April 22, 2024, to hawk groundnuts and simsim at nearby bars and restaurants.
“I locked my house and left my daughter sound asleep as I went out to eke a living,” she said.
When she returned, the child was missing.
Alex Wanga Adhola, father to slain girl, testifies in the murder case against former Gor Mahia and Harambee stars player Collins Okoth at the Milimani High Court on May 14 2025..
Photo credit: Richard Munguti | Nation Media Group
“I looked for my daughter from my neighbours’ houses in vain. I suspected Sylvia Aoko Odhiambo, who is charged alongside Okoth, had come to the house, picked her up, and taken her to her father, Alex Wanga Adhola,” Awuor told the court.
“I called Alex, my former husband, to find out if he was with our daughter,” Awuor said.
Alex asked her to go to Huruma, where they previously lived together, to confirm the child was not with him.
“She was not at her father’s house,” Awuor confirmed.
While there, they received a call from Awuor’s landlord asking them to return to Lucky Summer.
Upon her return, Awuor found her daughter’s body lying face-down in the corridor, half-naked and wearing white socks. She identified her daughter’s clothing in court.
"I cried uncontrollably but was restrained by an Administration Chief from touching her until police arrived,” she recalled.
Awuor told the court she suspected Sylvia, with whom she had lived in Huruma before separating from her husband.
She claimed Sylvia had developed animosity towards her and had even denied her daughter avocados. She said she had also borrowed over Sh15,000 from Sylvia.
Collins Okoth ( right) and Sylvia Aoko at the Milimani High Court during their murder trial on May 14, 2025.
Photo credit: Richard Munguti | Nation Media Group
Initially detained by police, Awuor was later released and turned into a state witness.
She also revealed that Alex buried their daughter in Asembo, Siaya County, without involving her.
Alex, a mechanic based in Umoja, testified that he received a call from Awuor’s landlord on the morning of April 22.
“I was asked to rush to Lucky Summer Estate as our missing daughter had been found. I asked, ‘Is she okay? How is she?’ but the landlord declined to disclose her status,” he told the court.
He rushed to the scene by boda boda, only to find his daughter dead.
“Both me and my estranged wife cried uncontrollably beside the body of our daughter,” he said.
Okoth and Sylvia, who both deny murdering Scuvian, were arrested on April 22, 2024, and have remained in custody since.
Okoth has applied for bail, but the prosecution has opposed the request. Justice Muteti directed that the bail application be heard virtually on July 13, 2025.
The trial continues on September 17, 2025. Both accused persons will remain in custody until then.
