Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has challenged Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) director Mohamed Amin to send officers to his home if they require him to record a statement over the murder of Dr Victoria Mutiso.
Gachagua said he was ready to cooperate with investigators but would not present himself at the DCI headquarters or a police station.
He spoke in Kiambu on Friday while opening a Democratic Congress Party (DCP) office, where he responded to claims by Amin that he had been in communication with people linked to the killing.
“Kama unasema kuna watu walinipigia simu, si ukuje kwangu uandike taarifa?” Gachagua asked.
He said investigators should visit him at home if they wanted information concerning telephone calls allegedly made to him over Mutiso’s death.
“Come and write a statement kwa sababu mimi siwezi kuja DCI, siwezi enda kwa polisi,” he said.
Gachagua also invoked his former position as the country’s second-highest office holder, saying he had moved beyond the level of ordinary political actors.
“Mimi nimepita hiyo kiwango, mimi niko kiwango ya Rais. So wewe kama kuna walinipigia simu, kuja niandike statement kwangu. I will write,” he said.
The remarks came hours after Amin alleged that investigators had established communication between Gachagua and key suspects in the murder.
Amin claimed Gachagua had allegedly been in contact with one of the suspects arrested in connection with the killing as well as the boda boda rider investigators believe was involved in the operation.
“Gachagua was in communication with one of the suspects in the Dr Mutiso murder. Gachagua was also in communication with the boda boda rider,” Amin said.
The DCI boss said some of the suspects arrested by detectives had allegedly attempted to flee the country.
“Suspects we arrested last evening were on the run almost crossing the border. Why would a politician want to bangle our investigations?” Amin asked.
Amin’s claims have added a new dimension to investigations into the killing, although the DCI has not accused Gachagua of being a suspect in the murder.
The former African Institute of Mental and Brain Health director was shot dead on July 29 while travelling in an Uber vehicle in Nairobi.
Preliminary investigations indicated that the vehicle encountered a black Toyota Prado that had partly blocked the road before a gunman opened fire.
Mutiso was taken to Kenyatta National Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The DCI has since intensified investigations, with detectives pursuing multiple leads to establish the motive, identify all those involved and determine the circumstances surrounding the killing.
The agency has also appealed to members of the public with information that could assist investigators to come forward.
Gachagua maintained that he was willing to provide investigators with any information he possessed concerning the matter, but insisted that they should obtain his statement at his residence.
The exchange comes amid heightened public attention on the investigation, with the DCI under pressure to establish the full circumstances surrounding Mutiso’s killing and bring all those responsible to justice.
