Lawyer Stephen Ombego (c) with members of the family of missing aide Bethwel ChesirThe family of Bethwel Chesir, aide to Marakwet East MP Bowen Kangogo, has intensified efforts to locate him after Inspector General Douglas Kanja said he was not in police custody.
Lawyer Stephen Ombego said the family was “using all means possible” to trace Chesir but had so far received no information on his whereabouts.
“There has been no information on him so far, and the family is working hard to trace him,” Ombego said.
On Friday, Lawyer Kwame Ramo from the Attorney General’s office told the High Court in Eldoret that Chesir had not been arrested by the police, contrary to claims by the family.
Ramo made the remarks during a hearing before Justice Patrick Otieno.
“Your honour, the missing person is not in the custody of the police and cannot be produced as demanded in the application before the court,” Ramo said.
Investigations officer Patrick Okumu filed an affidavit stating that Chesir was not at any police station in the country.
The IG has opposed a court order directing the production of Chesir.
Okumu’s affidavit indicated that police received information suggesting Chesir was abducted by masked men along the Kaptagat-Eldoret road on August 7.
The police recovered a vehicle Chesir and two colleagues were using, though the colleagues were left at the scene.
The police requested that the court vacate the production order, noting Chesir was not in their custody.
The family’s lawyer said they had witnesses who were with Chesir at the time and sought to have them cross-examined.
“We seek to have the two witnesses who were with Chesir in his car cross-examined because their testimony will clarify the circumstances of the abduction,” Ombego said.
Justice Otieno directed the AG to file affidavits, including statements from the two colleagues. The matter was also scheduled for further hearing on the same day.
The family filed the case at the High Court seeking to have the state produce Chesir.
“My client was travelling from Nairobi to see his ailing father, who is admitted at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital,” Ombego said. Chesir’s father, Robert Keino, is currently in the ICU.
Ombego said Chesir was intercepted around 9 pm on August 7 along the Kaptagat road while travelling with two others.
Their vehicle was blocked, and they were asked to identify themselves.
“When Chesir mentioned his name, he was taken away by armed men,” Ombego said.
Chesir’s uncle, Richard Kiptoo, his son Felix Chesir, and his sister Agneta Chemngetich protested outside the High Court over the incident.
“Chesir is innocent and was only going to see his sick father. We want clarity on his whereabouts,” Kiptoo said.
The family said they would continue to pursue all avenues to locate Chesir.
