This archive report was first published on 29 June 2020.
On May 9, 2020, Principal Magistrate Joe Omido acquitted Joshua Waiganjo, John M’mbijiwe, and the late Michael Remi Ngugi of impersonating a police officer and abetting the crime. The acquittal has now been appealed by the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in a Nakuru court.
Waiganjo was arrested in 2013 for allegedly masquerading as a senior police officer, and his case was heard by three judges in Nakuru and Naivasha over a seven-year period. Three magistrates and more than 40 witnesses testified in the case.
According to the ODPP, the appeal is pending hearing in the High Court in Nakuru. The ODPP had filed an appeal against the acquittal of Waiganjo and his co-accused, as noted on the ODPP's Twitter page on an unspecified date.
Principal Magistrate Omido ruled that the prosecution could not prove that Waiganjo indeed impersonated a police officer and assumed the duties of a senior police officer. The judgment also exonerated M’mbijiwe and Ngugi, who were accused of abetting and enabling Waiganjo to carry out unlawful activities.
