KHRC Writes To DCI, ODPP Over Nandi Mine Collapse

NANDI, Kenya, Feb 2 – The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) has written to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) seeking information about the progress of the investigation into the deadly blast incident that occurred on January 23, 2023, at a mining shaft in Nandi County.

Three people who were employees of Karebe Gold Mining were killed in the incident while six others suffered severe injuries.

The police arrested 10 suspects who were detained at Songhor police station and later arraigned before the court at Kapsabet.

The court granted the investigation officer 14 days to hold the suspects in custody pending further investigation.

Due to the nature and magnitude of the investigation, the investigations were taken up by investigators from DCI Headquarters who completed the investigation and made recommendations for a charge of murder against the suspects.

A duplicate file was then forwarded to the ODPP Nairobi for perusal, directions, and further actions in court.

On February 22, 2023, the state made an application to hold suspects for ten more days so that the DPP could peruse the file and recommend relevant charges.

However, the court dismissed the application on February 24, releasing the suspects on Sh1000, 000 cash bail each.

In light of these events, KHRC wrote to DCI and ODPP seeking information about the actual position of the DCI file that the investigation was made and the recommendation of a charge of murder made against the suspect.

They also wanted to know the current position of the file forwarded to ODPP and why it is taking too long to charge. KHRC threatened to explore other options if the information sought was not given within three days.

There are claims of interference from above which have delayed the probe.