Jeremiah Ngari Mugi, a car dealer has been arraigned before a Nairobi court after a vehicle used to rob a KPLC engineer of cash and other valuables in Ngara was traced back to him. Jeremiah Ngari Mugi appeared before Chief Magistrate Susan Shitubi of Milimani where police sought orders to detain him for 10 days to allow conclude investigations in unravelling the matter.
Car dealer Jeremiah Ngari Mugi at Milimani Law Courts.
According to an affidavit by Corporal Johnes Nyangige, the complainant, Vincent Manyinza Bundi, an electrical engineer at Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC), Stima Plaza reported the incident on 8th November 2024.
According to the investigators, the complainant went to Urban Shaving in Ngara on the evening of 8th November where he parked his motor vehicle registration number KBM 798Z, making Subaru SG5 next to the entry.
The engineer was attended to until 9.30 PM when the alarm of his vehicle went off prompting him to rush outside.
Bundi spotted his motor vehicle doors open and two people picking a bag and throwing it to their motor vehicle which was parked next to his with the engine running.
The court heard that upon checking, the complainant established that cash was Ksh 300,000, one HP laptop valued at Sh 60,000, one Microsoft interface valued at Sh 258,000, a mobile phone Samsung Note 4 valued at Sh 20,000, a mobile phone iPhone valued at Sh 30,000 and some other documents were missing.
“Preliminary investigations from the scene of crime indicate that the suspects used a motor vehicle registration number KDA 358G Nissan Latio white in colour which was captured by the CCTV footage at the said urban barbershop on 8th day of November 2024 at around 21:20 hrs,” Corporal Nyangige said.
Bundi proceeded to report the matter at Parklands police station that evening and investigations commenced.
The investigators established that the captured vehicle had the respondent who said was a car dealer during the time of the incident which was proven by one Kenneth Ndirangu who is said to be the current owner.
Tracking the car movement
Investigations revealed that the respondent took the vehicle to one of the car yards known as The Car Library which is along Kiambu Road on 8/11/2024 for it to be sold.
However, on the same day, he demanded back and left with it until the morning of 9th November 2024 when he returned it back to the said car yard.
“The respondent was traced and arrested on 10/11/2024 at Mirema Drive and said motor vehicle was recovered,” the officer said.
He added, “During the arrest, the following items were recovered, four motor vehicle ignition keys, seven motor vehicle remotes, twenty-one motor vehicle logbooks, three mobile phones, one laptop, motor vehicle sales booklet, one ABSA bank chequebook, one rubber-stamp, and other documents.”
Corporal Nyangige said that considering it is such a complex web of investigations, he is handicapped and could not finish the investigation, including verification call data from Safaricom, Car track history of the recovered logbooks from NTSA, retrieval and processing of the CCTV footage, phones to be forwarded to cybercrime and arrest of other suspects at large.
“Owing to the gravity of charges facing the respondent herein and the fact that he has no known place of abode, he is, therefore, a flight risk once released on cash bail owing that is staying in a rental house,” the officer noted.
His lawyers led by Paul Macharia opposed the application to detain their client on grounds that the police had already all the items termed as evidence, including his mobile phones.
Macharia told the court that Mugi has a place of abode since he was arrested at his house and, therefore,not a flight risk.
He added that his client is in the business of selling cars and his place of business is known to the police.
“Having known all these facts, there is no reason to have him detained,” the lawyer said.
The court will deliver the ruling on the application on 13th November 2024.
In the meantime, the businessman will be detained at Parklands Police Station.