Chief Justice Martha Koome has suspended Senior Principal Magistrate Martin Kinyua Mutegi of Kangema Law Courts from performing judicial duties following his arrest by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) over alleged bribery.
In a statement released on Wednesday, July 22, Koome said the decision takes immediate effect and follows the magistrate’s arrest alongside Principal Probation Officer Julius Irungu Njogu, who are under investigation over allegations of soliciting and receiving a bribe from a litigant in exchange for influencing the outcome of a criminal case.
The Chief Justice said the magistrate would remain relieved of judicial responsibilities pending the outcome of both the criminal investigations and internal disciplinary proceedings.
“Pending the conclusion of those processes, the judicial officer will be relieved of judicial duties in accordance with the law and established procedures, without prejudice to the ongoing criminal investigations by the relevant constitutional agencies,” Koome said.
She added that the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) had already initiated disciplinary proceedings against the magistrate in line with the Judicial Service Act and the Commission’s human resource policies.
The move comes a day after EACC officers arrested Mutegi and Njogu during an operation conducted in Kangema Township.
According to the Commission, the arrests followed a complaint by a Murang’a businessman who alleged that the probation officer demanded Ksh170,000, claiming he was acting on behalf of the magistrate to secure a favourable probation report that would result in a non-custodial sentence instead of imprisonment.
EACC said the operation culminated in the two suspects being arrested while they were allegedly receiving Ksh150,000 from the complainant.
The magistrate and the probation officer remain under investigation.
