The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) Noordin Haji wants the case against Patel Dam owner Perry Mansukh Kansagara and eight others transferred from Naivasha to Nairobi.
According to Haji, there have been attempts to interfere with witnesses and tamper with evidence, hence the need to move the trial to Nairobi.
“DPP Noordin Haji wants the trial of Perry Mansukh & 8 others in Solai case transferred from Naivasha to Nairobi on grounds that scene of crime had been interfered with, there was attempt to tamper with witnesses and that security of prosecutors wasn’t assured,” the DPP’s office said in a tweet on Wednesday.
This comes after State counsel Catherine Mwaniki, in an affidavit, accused the Patel coffee estate owners in Naivasha and WARMA officers of tampering with the scene of the crime.
Ms Mwaniki alleged that some of the key witnesses had been transferred and others threatened, with the assistance of the local administration.
She said the situation has made it hard for the Witness Prosecution Agency to access them.
Perry Mansukh Kansagara and his co-accused are charged with causing the deaths of 47 people who perished after the Patel Dam in Solai, Nakuru County broke its banks.
In July, Mr. Mansukh, Vinoj Kumar (Patel farm General Manager) and Nakuru County Director of Water Johnson Kamau Njuguna were arraigned in a Naivasha Court and charged with manslaughter, neglect of official duty and failing to prepare an environment impact assessment report.
The three pleaded not guilty before Naivasha Principal Magistrate Joseph Karanja and were released on a Sh2.5 million cash bail.
