As the murder case of Edwin Kiptoo, also known as Chiloba, commenced on Thursday, two high school students took the stand as the first witnesses to provide their testimonies.
Appearing before Judge Reuben Nyakundi at the Eldoret High Court, the two witnesses, a cousin of the accused person Jackton Odhiambo and his friend, recounted the events of how they assisted Odhiambo in moving a metal box from his residence in Chepkoilel, unaware of its contents.
Based on the accounts provided by the two, Jackton Odhiambo approached them on January 3rd of this year, seeking their assistance in moving out of the residence he shared with his wife and child.
At the time, Odhiambo’s wife had reportedly travelled to Siaya County for the December holiday.
The two witnesses testified that Odhiambo informed them that the metallic box contained dirty clothes, alcohol, and the faeces of a puppy, hence the foul smell. emanating from the box, which had filled the house.
“Jack told us the metallic box had clothes that belonged to his friend Chiloba who lived in Mile Tisa and he was taking them to his home. We had never met Chiloba before apart from seeing his photos on Jack’s Whatsapp status and Instagram postings,” the cousin narrated.
After assisting the accused person in loading the metallic box into a Toyota Fielder vehicle, Odhiambo proceeded to drop off the two witnesses at their residence in Huruma Estate.
Odhiambo’s brother, Jean Ochieng’, 19, also informed the court that upon their return from Siaya on January 4th, they arrived in Huruma at approximately 3 pm. They found their cousin (the first witness) inside the house, while his brother (the accused) was outside near the Toyota Fielder vehicle.
They then went to Odhiambo’s house to collect the remaining belongings but discovered that the room was permeated with a strong foul odor.
“I found more stuff in our room and the first witness who is our cousin said that Jack was moving in. On the next day, January 4, we went to help Jack move the remaining stuff at his Chepkoilel house. The house was stuffy and my brother told me that a rat had died on his couch,” said Ochieng’.
The hearing will continue on August 2 and 3, 2023, with 20 more witnesses lined up to testify.
