Two men charged with the murder of Kenyan-born Ugandan 3,000 meters steeplechase athlete, Benjamin Kiplagat, have been found guilty by the Eldoret High Court.
Justice Reuben Nyakundi ruled on Monday that scientific evidence linked Peter Ushuru, 30, and David Ekai, 25, to Kiplagat’s killing on December 31, 2023. Ekai was on a boda boda with Ushuru posing as his client.
Justice Nyakundi cited CCTV footage showing the two men chasing Kiplagat as he drove a pickup truck towards his home in Kimumu Estate, along the Eldoret-Iten highway.
The footage also revealed one of the attackers, armed with a knife, threatening the athlete as a boda boda rider stood by as an accomplice.
“Scientific evidence that was produced before my court during the trial places the two of you at the scene of the brutal murder on the night of December 31, 2023, at Kimumu Estate on the outskirts of Eldoret town,” said Justice Nyakundi.
Both accused men denied being present at the crime scene, with Ushuru claiming he was at a nightclub in Eldoret on the night of Kiplagat’s murder.
“I was enjoying a good time at a night club in Eldoret town on the night the said athlete was waylaid and killed by some people whom I do not know,” Ushuru told the court, adding that police officers raided his home, struck him on the head, and confiscated his mobile phone and M-Pesa details.
Ekai testified that he was transporting customers around Eldoret that night and claimed he was robbed by a stranger he had agreed to ferry to Kimumu.
“I met a customer in Eldoret town who asked if I could take him to Kimumu estate and I agreed on the condition that he pay me Sh300 for the journey to his house,” he explained. Ekai said he was forced to hand over his motorbike to the armed passenger, who then fled.
“I obliged and surrendered my motorbike to him for fear of being harmed by the stranger whom I had never met. He then took off with my motorbike and left me stranded,” stated Ekai.
He further told the court that he was forced to board another motorbike to his house in Langas estate where he was later picked up by police.
The defendants, represented by lawyers Mathai Maina and George Sonkule, will be sentenced on November 4.
