Cop accused of shooting dead Mathare miraa seller denies charges
A police constable on Friday at the Milimani law courts denied murdering Reuben Karani Kiriinya at a miraa kiosk in Mathare.
Beckam Osoro was charged before Justice Daniel Ogembo with shooting dead Kiriinya on the night of April 13 while enforcing a curfew in Mathare Area 4.
The hearing of his application to be released on bail will be held on Friday next week.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations recommended murder charges against him for killing the 26-year-old man in a kiosk while selling khat, popularly known as miraa.
The DCI forwarded the probe file to the office of Director of Public Prosecutions after proposing murder charges against the police based at Muthaiga police station.
Osoro was arrested alongside police constable Joseph Mwendwa of Kamukunji police station and Harrison Mwanza, who owns the kiosk where Kirinya was shot.
The deceased and the shop owner were reportedly chewing miraa at the kiosk at around 3am when Kirinya was shot on the chest and later succumbed to injuries.
Corporal Robert Mburu of Pangani DCI offices, who investigated the murder, said the investigation had found no evidence to charge Mwendwa and Mwanza.
The two cops will be the prosecution witnesses against Osoro, who surrendered to the Starehe DCI offices hours after the shooting incident and was booked in cells.
The officer also handed over the Ceska pistol he used to shoot dead Kirinya before fleeing from the scene during the night patrol.
DCI officers recovered a spent cartridge and a bullet head from the scene of the shooting.
Osoro had been in custody at the Pangani police station.