Mother insists athlete's burial won't happen

Lawyers representing the mother of Marathon champion Samuel Wanjiru said on Monday that their client will not withdraw a court injunction that had blocked the athlete's funeral.

Lawyers Gordon Ogolla and Wilfred Konosi accused the media of misleading the public that the court injunction will be withdrawn following alleged efforts to reconcile Wanjiru's mother, Hannah Wanjiru, and her daughter in law Teresia Njeri.

The lawyers said the matter will not be withdrawn until Police investigations can establish the cause of Wanjiru's death.

"There are talks to have our client and Wanjiru’s wife, Teresia Njeri arrange the burial and bury the athlete together. But that is only after the investigations and a post-mortem to establish the death are done,” said Mr Ogolla.

Mr Justice Anyara Emukule had on Thursday last week granted a 14-day injunction after Ms Hanna Wanjiru, went to court to stop the athlete's wife from burying her son.

Wanjiru died after falling off a balcony during a confrontation after his wife found him in bed with a waitress.

Ms Hanna Wanjiru has been vocal in insisting that her son was killed and claims that there was blood in the living room of his house.

The athlete’s body is at the Lee Funeral Home until the court in Nakuru hears both parties.

The mother accuses Ms Njeri of making arrangements to bury her son on May 24 without involving her. She does not even recognise Ms Njeri as her son’s wife, although almost everyone else, including the police, do.

Local media had on Monday reported that reconciliation efforts appeared to bear fruit as it emerged that Wanjiru's mother had agreed to settle the matter out of court.

The athlete’s mother Hannah Wanjiru was reported to have agreed to withdraw the court case. Her lawyer Wilfred Konosi was quoted to have said: "We are trying to reconcile the two parties and we have made some good progress."

Lawyer Ogolla acknowledged that there was a meeting between Wanjiru's mother, her daughter in law and their respective lawyers last Saturday to try and settle the matter out of court.

During the meeting it was agreed that investigations into the death must be completed before the matter at the High Court in Nakuru is withdrawn, Mr Ogolla said.