The Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (Supkem) has confirmed
the payment of Sh129 million to Saudi Arabian authorities for the release of
Kenyan Stephen Munyakho, also known as Abdulkarim.
According to Supkem National Chairman Hassan Ole Naado, the
money was paid a month ago.
“I take this opportunity to confirm that, indeed, the Muslim
World League of which Supkem is a member paid the said One Million dollars one
month ago,” he said.
This comes after the family, through their spokesman said
they had not received any communication on the said amount after UDA Secretary
General Hassan Omar announced the development.
“If accurate, this information will be an answered prayer
for the many well-wishers supporting the Save Stevo Campaign,” the family said.
“However, we have yet to receive an official communication
as a committee. We have contacted government officials in Kenya and Saudi
Arabia and will notify the public of the latest developments.”
Ole Naado said Supkem hosted the top leadership of the
Muslim World League in Nairobi in August and brought Steve's case to the
attention of the Secretary General Dr. Mohamed Abdul Karim Alissa and requested
for his intervention to save him from execution.
Steve's case was made an agenda item in the supreme council
of the Muslim World League, where it was observed that Steve never intended to
kill the victim, given that he and the victim were, in fact, good friends, save
for the very unfortunate fight that led to the victim's death.
It was then decided that Steve was deserving of the Muslim
World League's intervention, hence the authorization to pay the One Million US
dollars compensation demanded by the victim's family in order to save Steve from
execution.
“As we speak today, I have been reliably informed that the
victim's family has received the money, and it is now in the hands of the
authorities of the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to process Steve
for release.
“On Wednesday this week, I was in communication with office
of the Secretary General of the World Muslim League as well with the Saudi
Ambassador to Kenya and his Kenyan counterpart in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,
both of whom assured me that the administrative procedures in Saudi Arabia are
now underway to process Steve for release and, once those are done, our brother
will, by the Grace of Allah, be set free to come back home,” Ole Naado said.
Munyakho, 50, was a warehouse manager in Saudi Arabia.
He is said to have engaged in a fight with his colleague
Abdul Halim Mujahid Makrad Saleh at his office on April 9, 2011.
Saleh, who was stabbed in the left thigh and thumb, walked
himself to a hospital where he later died.
A Saudi Arabian court convicted Munyakho of manslaughter in
October 2011, a sentence that was overturned by a Shariah court, which enhanced
it to murder in June 2014.
Since then, Munyakho has been a state guest in various Saudi prisons.
