Teenager charged with robbery with violence, victim in ICU
An 18-year-old man has been charged with robbery with violence at Kibera law courts.
James Mangongo is suspected to have led a 15-man gang that attacked and critically injured a plumber before robbing him of phone, cash and his plumbing kit.
Mangongo was charged with violently robbing Samuel Thuku Nganga of Sh200, a Nokia 110 worth Sh1,500 and a kit containing assorted tools worth Sh12,000 in Congo area in Kawangware, Nairobi on December 5 jointly with others who are still at large.
Nganga remains admitted at the Kenyatta National Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit after sustaining serious injuries during the robbery.
His friend, who was with him at the time of the attack, is also admitted in the same hospital and police say both are yet to record their statements with the investigators.
Nganga was walking towards Congo stage with his friend when they were ambushed by about 15 men who emerged from roadside stalls and accosted them at around 5:30am on their way to work.
The gangsters then surrounded Nganga and grabbed his bag as his friend, who is listed as the star witness in the case, battled with the group and eventually freed himself and escaped.
Mangongo is said to have hit Nganga on his head. Causing him to fall head first before the thugs dragged him to a gate and continued torturing him.
The start witness informed Nganga’s brother of the incident and both returned to the scene.
Members of the public gathered and eventually confronted the thugs but were also injured in a chaotic scene but Mangongo remained beside Nganga holding a piece of wood he had used to assault him.
Before Nganga became unconscious, he had informed his brother that he had been robbed of everything and identified Mangongo as the one who injured him.
The members of the public then barred the accused from fleeing the scene until police officers arrived and arrested him.
However, Mangongo denied the charges before senior resident magistrate Renee Kitangwa and was freed on a Sh300,000 bond with a surety of similar amount.
The case will be mentioned on December 22.