The Director of Public Prosecution has formally asked a Milimani Law Court to approve their request and order Kelvin Kang’ethe’s surrender so he can stand trial in the USA for the alleged murder of Margaret Mbitu.
Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina was informed by prosecution attorney Vincent Monda that the prosecutor’s sole responsibility is to establish a connection between the “fugitive criminal and the criminal incident.”
According to Monda, Kang’ethe was found in possession of the deceased’s belongings when he was detained.
The prosecution said that Kang’ethe was in possession of Margaret’s driver’s licence, a Visa card, and a Bank of America debit card.
“It’s only through contact that you can get such vital documents. This showed the link between Kang’ethe and the deceased,” Monda said.
According to him, that is important information as it can be used to link the relationship of Kevin and the deceased and prove that they were in contact with each other.
In presenting the legal justification for the extradition, Monda stated that one of the offences for which extradition is permitted is murder. He continued and went into great detail about the Kenyan-American extradition treaty.
“The offence of murder is both a crime in Kenya and USA. But in the USA it’s classified as first-degree murder,” said Monda.
On the basis of this, he asked the court to approve the Massachusetts warrant that had been issued. He later discovered that the evidence put up in court demonstrated a connection between Kang’ethe and the deceased.
“DPP has laid a proper basis, followed the correct procedure and directed that Kang’ethe be surrendered to the USA for trial for the offence of murder in the first degree,” he said
According to Massachusetts state law, Kangethe faces a life sentence without the possibility of parole if he is found guilty of killing his lover Margaret Mbitu.
Second-degree murder carries a life sentence with the possibility of release, according to the law. In contrast, voluntary manslaughter carries a 20-year prison sentence.
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