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City Chef charged with stealing money, items from Wandia Gichuru


A city chef has been charged with stealing cash and property from his employer including a laptop, TV sets, watches, and jewelry all worth Sh480,000.

Marvin Mbugua is accused of housebreaking and stealing contrary to section 304 (1) of the penal code.

Charges against Mbugua read that on November 18, he broke into the house belonging to Wandia Gichuru in Jacaranda Avenue in Lavington, Nairobi with intent to steal and stole USD2000, a Huawei mobile phone, a Macbook laptop, two 65” TV sets assorted watches, and jewelry.

He denied the charges before senior resident magistrate Charles Mwaniki of the Kibera Law Courts.

The accused told the court that police have harassed him, violated his rights by detaining him for more than 24 hours, and also stolen his phone.

Mbugua says he was arrested on a Saturday and only taken to court on Tuesday where he remained in the court cells until in the afternoon when he was returned to the police station without being charged or presented before a magistrate.

The Kenyan law states that a suspect should be presented before the court at least 24 hours after his or her arrest.

Mbugua was later released on police bail of Sh15,000 and ordered to go to court on November 30 but he was not charged and the court extended his bail terms.

Mbugua’s lawyer says he was in the kitchen when the theft happened upstairs in the same house and he only saw a car leaving the compound and took its registration details and asked the guard about the occupants.

The guard manning the gate reportedly told Mbugua that the car’s two occupants, a man, and a woman, were Gichuru’s visitors after they had left.

Gichuru returned home and discovered her items and money was missing.

She summoned Mbugua and later called the police.

Court also heard that the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has directed the police to trace and grill the two people who visited Gichuru’s residence but that did not happen.

Mwaniki summoned the police officer investigating the case to appear before court on February 8 to shed light on Mbugua’s missing phone.

Mbugua is out on a cash bail of Sh15,000 ahead of hearing of the case on March 21.