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Wanted murder suspect Kang'ethe detained for 30 days awaiting US extradition

Murder suspect Kevin Kinyanjui Kangethe.

By Mary Wambui | Thursday, February 1, 2024

Kinyanjui, 40, was arrested at a club in Westlands on Monday night after silently jetting into the country.

The United States has formally filed an extradition request for Kevin Kinyanjui Kang'ethe, the Kenyan man accused of killing Margaret Mbitu last year in Boston.

The Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in a statement on Wednesday, said the US filed the request through the office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs, Criminal Division yesterday to have him charged for the alleged murder.

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"Upon thorough perusal of the request and being satisfied that there's sufficient evidence, the DPP filed a substantive Extradition application No E356 of 2024 against the fugitive. The matter will be mentioned before Chief Magistrate Hon Lucas Onyina tomorrow, February 1, 2024, for directions," the statement added.

Kinyanjui, 40, was arrested at a club in Westlands on Monday night after silently jetting into the country via the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

According to the ODPP, the suspect was constantly in communication with his friends back in the USA and family members, relatives, and friends using different telephone numbers when he arrived in Nairobi.

On arrival in Nairobi, he went into hiding until he was arrested on Monday night by DCI detectives working with US security agencies in the matter and detained at Gigiri police station.

First-degree murder charges

He is wanted by the Chelsea District Court in Massachusetts to face first-degree murder charges in violation of Massachusetts General Law chapter 265, section 1 under the laws of the USA.

Court documents say that the fugitive who has been on the run for the last two months is alleged to have killed Mbitu, 36, on October 31, last year by stabbing her multiple times in the face and neck leaving her body in a locked car in a parking garage at Boston International Airport before fleeing the US.

After finding the body on November 1 last year at around 6:30 pm, Massachusetts State Police issued an arrest warrant on the suspect on November 2. They urged the suspect to surrender himself to authorities.

"We urge this suspect to turn himself to authorities before he or anyone else gets hurt. We are making every effort possible to apprehend him and to begin the process of seeking justice for Margaret Mbitu and those mourning her tragic death," Suffolk County DA Kevin Hayden said in a statement at the time.

Mbitu nicknamed "Maggie" was reported missing after her employer called and said she had not shown up for her nursing job in Halifax.

Missing person posters shared by her family and friends online said Mbitu was last seen after she left her workplace on October 30.

"Embassy Nairobi commends the efforts of Kenyan law enforcement for apprehending Kenyan fugitive Kevin Kangethe, suspected to have murdered Margaret Mbitu in Massachusetts sometime between October 30 and November 4, 2023," the US Embassy said in a statement on Monday.