Obado gets second night in cell after guns found in EACC raids

What you need to know:

  • Ms Gandani said the governor will spend the second night at Gigiri and return to court on Friday for a ruling on his release.
  • The prosecution wants Mr Obado held for 15 days for proper investigations into the case.
  • His lawyers opposed the application, terming it malicious and aimed at embarrassing him.

Migori Governor Okoth Obado will spend another night in police cells following his arrest over possession of items including eight firearms.

Mr Obado was arrested on Wednesday after officers of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) raided his homes and office. His lawyers said he spent the night at Gigiri Police Station.

15 DAYS

Kibera Chief Magistrate Joyce Gandani made the ruling on Thursday, when the governor appeared before her.

Ms Gandani said the governor will spend the second night at Gigiri and return to court on Friday for a ruling on his release.

The prosecution wants Mr Obado held for 15 days for proper investigations into the case.

The team said Mr Obado is being investigated over firearms found at his rural home in Migori. Three were found in Migori and five in Nairobi.

"Upon questioning, he did not provide a satisfactory reason why he was in possession of weapons and ammunition," a prosecutor told the court, adding they will look into whether he had a licence.

FURTHER ANALYSIS

Detectives will visit Mr Obado's Migori home again as part of the investigations.

"[They will conduct an analysis of the homestead] and ballistic tests to know who the registered owners of the weapons are," the prosecutor said.

Police will also scrutinise Mr Obado's phone data.

His lawyers opposed the application, terming it malicious and aimed at embarrassing him.

"There is nothing to investigate. This is a game of musical chairs. It is public humiliation meant to embarrass the governor," Rogers Sagana, one of his lawyers, said, remarks which lawyer Cliff Ombeta echoed.

Mr Obado was arrested on Tuesday at the basement of Hilton Hotel in Nairobi and taken to the headquarters of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for questioning.

He was then taken to Gigiri, where he spent the night.

On Thursday morning, Mr Obado was driven to Milimani Law Courts where he was held in the basement cells before being taken to Kibera.

OTHER CASES

The EACC is also looking into claims that Mr Obado used proxies, among them his relatives, to siphon Sh2 billion from the coffers of the county government.

This is according to an affidavit filed in court by the anti-corruption watchdog.

The county boss is also facing murder charges in the case of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno, who was his girlfriend.

In the case of Ms Otieno, he was freed on a cash bail of Sh5 million under strict conditions that include staying at least 20km away from Homa Bay, which is Ms Otieno's home county.