The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) has filed a petition seeking to force the government to produce Willie Kimani, the lawyer who mysteriously disappeared last week in the company of his client and a taxi driver.
The LSK made the demand as Mr Kimani’s employer, the International Justice Mission (IJM), called on foreign embassies in Nairobi to push the government to speed up investigations into the matter.
“IJM strongly condemns such a wanton horrific act and calls for the immediate unharmed release of the three individuals,” IJM-Kenya Field Office Director Claire Wilkinson told the Nation on Thursday evening. “We are requesting embassies in Kenya to continue to advocate with the government for the release of the three men unharmed immediately and arrest the criminals behind this incident.”
LSK chairman Isaac Okero told the Nation on telephone that his organisation had instructed lawyers to file the request to have the government either produce Mr Kimani or indicate his whereabouts.
“That petition has been filed this afternoon as we speak and our lawyers have been directed to serve the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General for a hearing tomorrow (Friday) at 9am,” he said.
The petition, known in legal jargon as harbeas corpus, is generally a summons with a force of a court order where people seek the court’s hand to have someone, who is illegally detained (often by the State) to be released. It also demands to know the exact efforts being made by the State in tracing the missing person.
Minutes after ordering the release of three Administration Police officers linked to the dissaperance of Human Rights lawyer Willie Kimani, his client and a taxi driver, Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet ordered their re-arrest this morning, Friday, July 1.
This came after two bodies suspected to be those of the above named were found in Oldonyo Sabuk river, Kilimambogo.
According to developing news, the third body, believed to be Willie Kimani, slipped back into he river and the search is going on.
Daily Nation has reported that the court has given Boinnet and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations up to 2pm, today, Friday, July 1, to give an interim report on investigations into the disappearance of Kimani and two others.
More information to follow
