Solomon Mwangi Mbuthi was killed by fellow principals: Jane Muthoni

The woman accused of killing Kiiru Boys' High School Principal Solomon Mwangi Mbuthi now claims that her husband’s murder was planned by his fellow principals who were unhappy with his transfer.

Appearing before Justice Joel Ngugi, as the first defence witness, Ms Jane Muthoni, who has been in remand for the last four years following the murder, defended herself against the charge of killing Mr Mbuthi and said it was the cartel which orchestrated Mr Mbuthi’s death after he refused to play into their game.

CARTEL

The court heard that the principals, who influenced transfers and promotions of teachers in the region, were aggrieved after Mr Mbuthi was posted to the school while she was promoted to head Icaciri Secondary School without going through them.

Ms Muthoni claimed that the cartel had demanded Sh1 million from them to facilitate their transfer to schools of their choice.

 “After struggling for 13 years to secure transfer to work in the same region, my husband was introduced to a group of school heads who he was told had a say in transfers and promotions. The group, however, demanded Sh1 million and we felt that the amount was exorbitant so we decided to just follow the right channel,” said Ms Muthoni.

TRANSFER APPLICATIONS

She said their transfer applications were later approved by the Teachers Service Commission. She was posted to Kiambu from Nyandarua County while her husband was transferred to Kiru Boys' High School.

Ms Muthoni told the court that the cartel was not happy with their promotion and resorted to threats and intimidation before the murder.

She said her husband started receiving threatening messages and calls from unknown people who claimed they were sent to eliminate him.

“In one of the threats which we reported to Kiriani Police Station, the caller said they would ensure that we quickly lose our positions the same way we got them, eliminate us and give the positions to their friends,” said Ms Muthoni.

She said the group was determined to eliminate them to the extent that they tried to set him up with his employer.

SET TRAP

She said the group introduced her husband to a woman who operates an M-Pesa business with the intention of setting up a trap for him.  “They told him that the woman was a reliable business partner in matters of M-Pesa transactions yet their intention was to monitor his transactions and use the information against him,” she said.

Ms Muthoni said the group had written to the TSC accusing Mr Mbuthi of misappropriating school funds which saw him investigated before he was later cleared.

She told the court that the group had incited the school community and other local leaders against Mr Mbuthi.

The court heard that at one point, Mr Mbuthi was set up by the woman who operated the M-Pesa business. She claimed that the woman had unsuccessfully persuaded him to buy ''leaked'' KCSE exam papers in 2015.

“He later came to learn that it was a trap after rumours went round that he had purchased [KCSE] exam papers for his candidates,” said Ms Muthoni.

Ms Muthoni claimed that the cartel framed her after murdering her husband. 

EXTRA-MARITAL AFFAIRS

Ms Muthoni has been charged alongside Mr Isaac Ng’ang'a alias Gikuyu with the murder of Mr Mbuthi between November 4 and 11, 2016 in Kiambu County.

According to the prosecution, Ms Muthoni hired four people to eliminate her husband after she suspected him of having extra- marital affairs.

One suspect, Joseph Kariuki, was sentenced to seven years in prison for manslaughter after he confessed to taking part in the murder.

The fourth suspect, Nelson Njiru, is still at large and efforts to trace him have been fruitless.

The two were on November 11 put on their defence after the court established they had a case to answer.

Ms Muthoni has dismissed claims by the prosecution witness that the murder was a result of a love triangle. She said her husband never had any extra-marital affairs.    

“My husband valued his marriage and had no single instance of infidelity. The woman was only part of the scheme by the cartel,” said Ms Muthoni.

The hearing continues today.