The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has brought 17 fresh charges against 15 officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and National Intelligence Service (NIS) over the alleged abduction and disappearance of two Indian nationals and their Kenyan driver in Nairobi in 2022.
The suspects, some of whom served in the now-disbanded Special Service Unit (SSU), have been summoned to appear before the Kahawa Law Courts on September 7, 2026, for plea-taking. Senior Principal Magistrate Njeri Thuku issued the summons.
The accused are Peter Gachiku, James Tanki, Joseph Mbugua, David Kipsoi, Joseph Mbaya, John Kamau, Hillary Kipchumba, Stephen Matunda, Simon Gikonyo, Paul Muriithi, Bonface Mtulia, Elikana Mugendi, Fredrick Kamau, John Mavhari and Michael Bett.
They are facing charges that include kidnapping with intent to murder, conspiracy to commit a felony, forgery and subjecting a person to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under the National Intelligence Service Act.
The case goes back to July 2022, when Indian nationals Mohammed Zaid Sami Kidwai and Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan disappeared together with their Kenyan taxi driver, Nicodemus Mwania Mwange.
The three were reported missing on July 24, 2022, after they failed to return home or communicate with their families. Kidwai and Khan were in Kenya on tourist visas at the time.
Their disappearance caused widespread concern after reports indicated that armed men in unmarked vehicles had intercepted them near the Ole Sereni area along Mombasa Road. The vehicle they had been travelling in was left behind as the three were allegedly taken away.
Investigations later turned to officers attached to the former DCI Special Service Unit. Four SSU officers were detained in October 2022 as investigations continued, while other officers were questioned over the alleged abduction and possible extrajudicial killings.
The two Indian nationals had reportedly been working in Kenya as part of a team of technology specialists during the 2022 election period. Their disappearance came weeks before the August 2022 General Election, attracting further public attention.
In 2023, 15 suspects, among them 13 former DCI officers, one NIS officer and a Kenya Wildlife Service officer, were arraigned over the alleged enforced disappearance. The matter was later taken before the High Court after the suspects were accused of murder.
Prosecutors alleged that the officers played a role in the abduction and subsequent killing of Kidwai, Khan and Mwange. During the court proceedings, witnesses told the court that vehicles linked to security agencies had allegedly been used to follow the three from Mombasa Road towards the Aberdare region.
However, the murder case came to an end on August 26, 2026, after the DPP asked the High Court to discontinue the proceedings through a nolle prosequi.
Justice Francis Olel granted the application, ending the murder prosecution that had been before the court for more than two years.
The DPP has now returned to court with fresh charges based on a different legal approach.
“The new charges were filed after the High Court terminated the earlier murder proceedings against the accused persons, paving the way for the prosecution to institute fresh charges based on the available evidence.”
According to the prosecution, the alleged incident took place on July 22, 2022, when the suspects, travelling in four vehicles alongside other unidentified people, allegedly tracked down and intercepted the vehicle carrying the two Indians and their driver in Nairobi County.
“On July 22, 2022, in Nairobi County, the suspects, while travelling in four motor vehicles alongside other persons whose identities are yet to be disclosed, trailed and intercepted a vehicle carrying Mohammed Zaid Sami Kidwai, Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan, both Indian nationals, and Nicodemus Mwania Mwange, a Kenyan driver.”
The fresh case includes a charge under Section 258 of the Penal Code for kidnapping with intent to murder. The suspects also face a Section 393 charge for conspiracy to commit a felony.
Another charge has been brought under Section 51(3) of the National Intelligence Service Act for subjecting a person to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
The suspects remain innocent unless and until a court finds them guilty. Their appearance at Kahawa Law Courts on September 7 will mark the start of proceedings on the new charges.