U.S. fugitive arrested in Kenya after 13 years on the run
A Kenyan citizen wanted in the U.S. over a fatal drunk-driving case has been arrested nearly 13 years after fleeing the country.
A Kenyan citizen wanted in the U.S. over a fatal drunk-driving case has been arrested nearly 13 years after fleeing the country.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) has moved to have him extradited to the U.S. to face sentencing following his conviction.
His arrest brings to an end a manhunt that stretched across continents, with the suspect eventually traced to Nairobi.
He was presented before the Milimani Law Courts on September 9 as extradition proceedings against him got underway.
He had been arrested in Runda, a Nairobi suburb, in an operation that ended a search for him that had lasted since 2013.
According to charge sheets, on September 10, the man was convicted in the U.S. of ‘Gross Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated’, an offence under Section 191.5(a) of the California Penal Code.
The law defines the offence as the unlawful killing of a person without malice aforethought while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and with gross negligence.
The conviction also included three special allegations.
The charge sheets show that he left the U.S. in October 2013, days before he was due to appear for sentencing at a California court.
He had been ordered to appear before the Superior Court of California, County of Madera, on October 28, 2013, but failed to appear.
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His failure to attend the sentencing prompted the U.S. Department of Justice to make a formal extradition request through Kenya’s Attorney General’s office in December 2019.
Nearly seven years later, a warrant issued by the Milimani Chief Magistrate’s Court led to his arrest on September 9, 2026.
When he appeared before Senior Principal Magistrate Teresia Nyangena, he sought to be released on bond, offering to surrender his passport and comply with any conditions imposed by the court.
However, the prosecution, led by Assistant DPP Duncan Ondimu alongside two other officials, opposed his release, arguing that he remained a flight risk given his history of failing to appear in court.
The prosecution also pointed to the pending extradition proceedings as a reason to deny him bond.
The magistrate declined to release him on bond and ordered that he be held at Gigiri Police Station as the extradition case proceeds.
His case will be mentioned on September 15, when the court is expected to issue further directions on the extradition proceedings.
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