Naivasha Court Issues Arrest Warrants for US-Based Couple in Murder-for-Hire Case

A Naivasha court has issued arrest warrants for a Kenyan couple living in the United States and authorised efforts to extradite them to Kenya over allegations that they conspired to murder five members of the same family.

The couple are accused alongside a 73-year-old co-defendant in what prosecutors describe as a murder-for-hire plot. While the elderly man has already appeared in court and faces five counts of conspiracy to murder, the couple have remained in the United States and have repeatedly failed to appear before the court despite being summoned for nearly two years.

The case centres on a disputed parcel of land in Molo town. Investigators allege that in March 2024, two of the accused met suspected hitmen at a hotel in Nakuru to arrange the killings. Prosecutors say a fee of KSh3.1 million was agreed upon and that money was later raised and delivered to the alleged killers.

The charges relate to several dates between March and May 2024 and involve an alleged plot to kill the wife, three sons and daughter of the elderly co-accused.

Chief Magistrate Abdulqadir Ramathan said the court had given the couple multiple opportunities to appear. He noted that defence lawyers had repeatedly assured the court that the pair would attend proceedings, but those assurances were not fulfilled.

“The court gave the couple every opportunity to present themselves but they failed, and I agree with the prosecution that this court should take decisive action and issue a warrant of arrest,” the magistrate said.

The defence requested a 45-day stay of the arrest warrants, but the court rejected the application and advised that any challenge should be filed before the High Court. Magistrate Ramathan also authorised the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to work with United States authorities to begin extradition proceedings.