Aisha Jumwa freed on Sh4 million cash bail in murder case
Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa has been released on a Sh4 million cash bail in the Gumbao Jola murder case.
Jumwa's bodyguard Geoffrey Otieno was released on a cash bail of Sh1.5 million with an alternative of Sh1 million bond.
Judge Njoki Mwangi on Friday also directed that the accused persons deposit their passports at the court.
She said the accused will only be allowed to travel if they provide good reasons for their need of travel.
Mwangi further warned the accused against intimidating or threatening prosecution witnesses.
Jumwa and her aide will also be required to appear before court anytime they are needed to do so.
Jumwa had been charged alongside Otieno with murdering Gumbao Jola.
They are accused of fatally shooting the 48-year-old man in Ganda village on October 15, 2019 during the Ganda ward by-election.
Mombasa assistant DPP Alloys Kemo had opposed the release of the accused persons on bail.
Kemo said Jumwa was an influential person and she was likely to interfere with prosecution witnesses who they intend to rely on during the trial.
The prosecutor further said Otieno did not have a known residence and therefore it was risky for the court to release him.
But the defense counsel urged judge Njoki Mwangi to release the duo on bond.
They said the DPP was trying to discriminate against Jumwa.
They said senior people like governors had more serious charges and they were out on bond but the DPP wants to single out the MP.
On Otieno's residency, the defense counsels said Otieno's three homes are well known and therefore the DPP cannot use that as an excuse to deny him bond.
Jumwa and Otieno were on Thursday charged with the murder of Jola
The MP and her aide denied the charges before judge Mwangi.
The defense counsels led by Danstan Omari, Jared Magolo and Cliff Ombeta asked the court to release Jumwa and her bodyguard on reasonable bond terms.
They said the state has been frustrating the MP and her aide through calculated moves which aim at denying them bond.
The lawyers urged the court to disregard all the negative efforts by the DPP and grant the accused persons bail.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions last week okayed a murder charge against Jumwa over the killing of a man during last year's Ganda Ward by-election.
The ODPP through Kemo, approved murder and assault charges against Jumwa and Otieno over the fatal shooting of the man and injury of several people during the poll.
The man was shot in the shoulder and killed during the chaos and several other people, including police officers, were injured.

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