Witness tells court how he helped ex-KDF officer transport bodies of his wife, two children

A Nyeri court on Tuesday heard how former Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldier Major Peter Mugure allegedly transported the bodies of his estranged wife Joyce Syombua and her two children who he is said to have killed at the Laikipia airbase in October 2019.

Collins Pamba, who was accused together with Mugure but was later turned to be a State witness, took the stand before Justice Martin Muya and gave details of how he assisted the key suspect load, transport and bury the remains of the three.

At the centre of the testimony given by Pemba, who is serving a 5-year term at the Kerugoya prison for his role in the murders, was Subaru Impreza KCP 740F, which was brought to the court as he explained how he and Mugure bungled the bodies into the vehicle.

The witness was however put to task by the defense lawyer George Gori over details of the alleged transportation.

The second prosecution witness, Inspector Victor Kiptoo, took to the stand and explained how the main suspect allegedly reset his phone once he was confirmed to be a suspect.

“I saw that he was concentrating too much on the phone and doing some entries…at that point the phone switched off and everything was erased back to factory settings,” said Kiptoo.

And while cross-examining the witness, the defense wanted to know about a man who the officer said he knew nothing about.

Four more witnesses are lined up to testify in the case on Wednesday.