Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi has given a detailed account of how his son was abducted while implicating the National Intelligence Service (NIS) in his family’s woes.
On Tuesday, January 14, the CS was spotted making his way to the Kilimani Police Station to record a statement after his explosive press conference where he claimed his son had also been a victim of abduction.
Kenyans.co.ke has since obtained an explosive 3-page statement filed by Muturi, in which he accused NIS boss Nordin Haji of being behind the abduction that took place in June 2024.
According to the report, the CS received a harrowing phone call from his daughter-in-law who informed him that she had received word from Embakasi West Member of Parliament Mark Mwenje about his son Leslie Mutiro’s plight.
Justin Muturi and President Willima Ruto at a past function. PHOTO/ Courtesy.
Muturi’s son was allegedly picked up by ‘armed, hooded gangsters’ while they were travelling along Denis Pritt Road turning into Olengruone Avenue. Leslie was in the company of Mwenje and an advocate of the High Court of Kenya, Marangu Imanyara.
The report further detailed how Leslie, Imanyara and Mwenje had come together to attend a birthday party in Lavington at the time of the incident.
The CS further detailed in the report that the car that abducted his son was a White Toyota Prado whose details were forwarded to the then Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome, who promised to circulate information across various police stations.
PS for Interior Raymond Omollo was also informed of the abduction. Muturi, however, revealed in his police report that attempts to reach the Director of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin proved futile.
“I tried calling National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director General Noordin Haji but he did not answer either,” a statement from Muturi said.
“After about an hour, I called the IG again. He informed me that he alerted all personnel on all routes, suspecting it might have been a robbery. However, I told him that based on the information by Mwenje, the abductors appeared to be security personnel rather than robbers. He seemed unconvinced, stating that there were no police operations that night.
The statement further details a case of reluctance from the Kilimani Police Station to release police footage after the abduction incident started to gain traction. Once footage was made available, it revealed the events leading up to Leslie’s abduction.
“The footage showed Leslie driving out, followed by Mwenje,” Muturi’s police statement read. “The footage also captured the box Prado and another vehicle resembling a Probox following Leslie and Mwenje prior to the abduction.
After attempts to contact President William Ruto about the abduction, Muturi further claims to have learnt that the Box Prado allegedly involved in the abduction was attached to the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU).
Attempts by the CS to reach ATPU director Kiprotich Mohammed proved futile, but he claims to have been assured by Mohammed’s deputy James Onyango that the ATPU was not involved in the abduction after a thorough probe.
Next, Muturi contacted the then Interior CS Kithure Kindiki after further inquiries revealed his son was likely being held by the National Intelligence Service. Kindiki was, however, adamant the NIS was not involved in the abduction.
Muturi also detailed a conversation with President Ruto after driving to the State House to personally explain his plight to the Head of State. According to the CS, he openly expressed his speculation to Ruto that the NIS was holding his son, but the President was apprehensive.
It gets more interesting as Muturi further suggested in his report that he heard Ruto confront Noordin Haji on whether NIS was involved in Leslie’s abduction.
“Noordin confirmed that indeed, he was holding my son and the President ordered him to release my son immediately. Noordin responded that Leslie would be released within an hour,” Muturi’s explosive statement went on.
Public Service CS Justin Muturi making his remarks during IEBC post-election evaluation report launch held at Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi on January 16, 2023.
Justin Muturi