A specialized detective team, tasked with tracking down Kelvin Kang’ethe following his escape from Muthaiga Police Station, has detected signals from a mobile phone believed to be in his possession.
Initial findings indicate that the phone signals are emanating from Machakos County, suggesting that Kang’ethe may have sought refuge in the area after fleeing the police station. Kang’ethe was facing extradition to the United States to face murder charges related to the death of his girlfriend, Margaret Mbitu.
Law enforcement officials have intensified their search efforts in Machakos and surrounding areas within the city. They are also working to extract phone call data to identify individuals Kang’ethe communicated with before his escape. Additionally, detectives are pursuing potential accomplices who may have assisted Kang’ethe in evading capture.
Investigations have revealed that a person claiming to be Kang’ethe’s lawyer visited him at the police station, and authorities permitted Kang’ethe to leave his cell to meet the purported advocate. Kang’ethe subsequently absconded from the police station under mysterious circumstances around 5 pm on Wednesday, February 7.
In response to the incident, senior police officials convened at Muthaiga Police Station for closed-door discussions with station leadership. Following the meeting, four police officers on duty during Kang’ethe’s escape, along with the alleged advocate, were arrested. They are expected to assist in Kang’ethe’s re-arrest, as requested by the US authorities.
The escape has cast a shadow on Kenya’s law enforcement, particularly after the US Embassy had commended Kenyan detectives for apprehending Kang’ethe while he was socializing at a Westlands nightclub.
Upon his initial arrest in Nairobi, Kang’ethe was brought before court on a miscellaneous application, where detectives were granted a 30-day detention period for further investigation. The court acknowledged the seriousness of the charges against Kang’ethe and noted the absence of objections from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. The DPP informed the court of pending extradition applications to the US, where Kang’ethe is wanted in connection with the murder of his girlfriend, whose body was allegedly discovered in an airport basement.
