Now Margaryan wants Court to block Inquiry

Capital FM, Kenya
July 27, 2006

By Rob Jillo/Maryanne Mbogo

Controversial Armenian Artur Margaryan has now gone to court seeking
to have the Kiruki Commission of Inquiry stopped from conducting
its proceedings.

Through lawyer Oscar Avedi, Margaryan complains that the Commission
has denied him legal representation despite being adversely mentioned
in the hearings.

He also wants the court to declare the previous proceedings null and
void and compel the commissioners to allow a lawyer to subsequently
represent him.

Constitutional judge Roslyne Wendoh has now directed his lawyer to
serve the commission with the suit papers so that the case can be
heard in the presence of all parties on Wednesday next week.

The Kiruki commission was appointed in June and had been expected to
conclude its sittings next week.

Meanwhile, police today came under sharp criticism for conducting
haphazard and unprofessional investigations into the Artur brothers.

Lawyer Jane Ondieki who is representing suspended CID director Joseph
Kamau accused the police of mishandling the items that were recovered
from the Armenians’ Runda Residence.

She questioned Head of the Special Crimes Prevention Unit Richard
Katola, why they did not secure the scenes from which evidence was
gathered as is required by procedure.

Ondieki: Were you wearing gloves when you opened these vehicles?

Katola: No, my Lords

Ondieki: Did you consider it necessary to have scenes of crime personel
dust these items for fingerprints before you trumpled all over them?

Katola: No

Earlier, Jiwan Yusuf whose company transported 2 containers to the
Kensington Holdings warehouse in Nairobi told the inquiry that he
has since been unable to trace the people who hired him to do the job.

"After transporting he told me to wait for the payment. But after a
month, I went to the office and found no office, they had relocated,"
he said.

Hearing continues.