Women accused of hosting police station attackers to undergo psychiatric tests

Three women accused of harbouring terrorists who attacked Mombasa's Central Police Station leave the Mombasa Law Courts on September 14, 2016. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Mombasa Resident Magistrate Emmanuel Mutunga also directed that a report on each of the suspects be presented to court in five days.
  • Ms Shukri Haji indicated through gestures that she could not communicate in sign language.
  • Police want the women remanded for 30 days at the Port Police Station to allow them to complete their investigations.
  • The case against the suspects will be mentioned on September 21.

Three women accused of hosting the leader of female terrorists who attacked the Central Police Station in Mombasa on Sunday will undergo a psychiatric examination.

Mombasa Resident Magistrate Emmanuel Mutunga also directed that a report on each of the suspects be presented to court in five days.

Police say Naema Mohammed Ahmed, Saida Ali Haji and Shukri Ali Haji are Somali refugees.

When the suspects were presented in court on Wednesday, only Ms Ahmed could effectively communicate in the Somali language through an interpreter while Ms Saida was said to be ‘‘somehow’’ deaf but understood the language.

Ms Shukri indicated through gestures that she could not communicate in sign language and she only stood calmly in the dock without uttering a word.

The court also directed that Ms Shukri be taken to a specialist to establish her capacity to communicate by speech or in sign language.

The magistrate's orders followed an application by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Alexander Muteti to have the suspects taken to the Coast General Hospital for psychiatric assessments.

Mr Muteti made the application when the court was informed that Ms Saida and Ms Shukri could not communicate effectively with a Somali-Swahili interpreter and a sign language interpreter.

SEPARATE PROCEEDINGS

“We may consider separating the proceedings of Ms Ahmed and Ms Saida Haji and those of Ms Shukri Haji for purposes of convenience,” said Mr Muteti.

Police want the women remanded for 30 days at the Port Police Station to allows them to complete their investigations.

In an application filed in court, they claimed that the women are connected to the offence or have information that may assist in the investigations.

The women were arrested on Sunday at Kibokoni after it was established that they had hosted Tasmin Yakub, one of the three terrorists who attacked the Central Police Station in Mombasa on Sunday.

“The suspects are believed to be Al-Shabaab operatives and are currently in the country and possess refugee cards,” reads the affidavit filed by the investigating officer.

TERRORIST SAFE HOUSE

The officer said the suspects rented a house in Kibokoni that is believed to have been used as a safe house for Al-Shabaab and ISIS operatives in Mombasa.

He added that four mobile phones with SIM cards were seized from the suspects and it is believed that they belong to the slain terrorist.

“Their accomplices are still at large and [it] may take time to apprehend [them].

“I pray [to] this court to grant orders to remand them for 30 days to enable us [to] finalise investigations,” said the officer.

On Sunday, police officers in Mombasa foiled an attack on the Central Police Station when they gunned down three female terrorists.

The terrorists had made their way into the station under the guise of reporting the theft of a mobile phone.

The case against the suspects will be mentioned on September 21.