Moi's Bridge Evans Juma Wanjala denies killing three girls
Evans Juma Wanjala when he appeared in court on August 23, 2021.
Mr Evans Juma Wanjala pleaded not guilty to murder in the killings of teenage girls in Moi’s Bridge town when he appeared in a Kapenguria court yesterday.
The suspect denied the three counts against him when he appeared before Justice Justus Bwongonga, who directed the case to be mentioned on September 8 before the Eldoret High Court. He also ordered the suspect to be remanded at the Eldoret GK prison.
"The bail will be determined by the Eldoret High Court. If given the bail, he might interfere with the murder case,” said the judge.
Evans Juma Wanjala when he appeared in court on August 25, 2021.
Mr Wanjala is accused of killing Linda Cherono, 13, Mary Elusa, 14, and Stacy Achieng, 10.
In the first case, the court heard that Mr Wanjala murdered Stacy Achieng Nabiso on the night of December 31, 2019, in Soweto estate in Moi’s Bridge, a small town that straddles Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu and Kakamega counties.
He is accused of murdering Mary Elusa between December 15 and 16, 2020, in Tuiyabei village, while the third count states that he murdered Linda Cherono Kinyua between June 11 and 15 in the same area.
Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Jalson Makori asked the court not to release the suspect on bond.
“I was served the three affidavits to court not to grant the suspect any bond. He is a dangerous man because he has other murder cases,” said Mr Makori, arguing that if the accused is released on bail he might interfere with witnesses.
The suspect was presented to court just two days after it was proven that he was mentally fit to stand trial.
Mental test
A psychiatric assessment conducted at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital on July 21, and presented to Eldoret High Court Deputy Registrar Rosemary Onkoba showed that he is mentally stable to plead to murder charges.
Mr Wanjala is accused of brutally murdering the three girls after assaulting and defiling them. He would lure the victims to different locations of the town and defile them before strangling them, the court heard.
Some of the parents of the murdered girls, who were in court to hear the case, said they want justice to be delivered.
The suspect was arrested in July after he allegedly confessed to having killed five children in the area.
Detectives are still investigating the murders of the other two children.
