The High Court of Kenya has given the way forward on fugitive Kelvin Kang’ethe who is accused of killing his girlfriend in the United States of America (US).
Milimani chief magistrate Lucas Onyina in his ruling on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, ordered for the fugitive to be extradited to the US to face murder charges.
The Magistrate in his ruling found that the alleged offence of murder to which the Extradition Request and the Authority to Proceed relate meets the list test.
The court said the material laid established a link between Kang’ethe and the alleged offence of first-degree murder, adding that the court, not being a trial court, is not mandated to conduct a trial to determine his guilt or otherwise.
According to the ruling, there are established reasons to justify the surrender of the respondent to the US to face trial for the offence of first-degree murder in violation of Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 265, section 1.
Kelvin Kang’ethe to be Extradited
“The application is therefore allowed of prayer number 2, which specifically the Respondent is hereby ordered to be returned and/or conveyed out of Kenya and surrendered in the United States of America to face charges of the alleged first-degree murder in violation of Massachusettes General Law, Chapter 265, section 1, for which he was formally charged by criminal complaint in Case No, 23 CR-2559 in the District Court in Chelsea, Massachusetts” the magistrate ruled.
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Moreover, this ruling came after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on July 1, 2024, urged the court to grant their request and order the surrender of Kevin Kang’ethe to face trial in the USA over the alleged murder of his girlfriend Margaret Mbitu.
Prosecution Counsel Vincent Monda told Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina that his mandate is to only ascertain that a link existed between ‘fugitive criminal and the criminal incident’
Kang’ethe has been behind custody at the Industrial Area Prison as he awaited the proceedings of his extradition to the US where he is facing first-degree murder charges.
Fugitive Detained After Being Re-Arrested
Earlier in February, the murder suspect was arraigned hours after he was re-arrested following a daring escape from police custody.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in a statement noted that the court’s Magistrate ruled that Kang’ethe be detained at the Prison as he awaits his extradition proceedings.
“Milimani Chief Magistrate Hon. Lucas Onyina has today allowed an application by the prosecution seeking to have the fugitive Kevin Adam Kinyanjui Kangethe alias Kevin A. Kangethe detained at Industrial Area Remand Prison pending the hearing and determination of an extradition proceeding against him,” read part of the statement.
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This development came after the prosecution asked the High Court to send the suspect to the prison earlier during his arraignment.
In his defense, the prosecutor Vincent Monda explained that they cannot risk of the suspect escaping from police custody again.
The Kenyan citizen who had been living in the US escaped to Kenya in late 2023 after the death of his girlfriend Margaret Mbitu who was found dead inside an airport in Massachusetts.
Since then, Kang’ethe has been on the radar of both Kenyan and US police in connection with the gruesome murder.
He managed to spend three months while on the run before he was finally arrested in Nairobi’s Parklands area while leaving an entertainment joint late January.
Following his arrest, the US government made a formal application to extradite him to the country where he was expected to face charges including first degree murder.
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