Makadara Law Courts Principal Magistrate Monica Kivuti died on Friday, June 14, a day after she was shot and seriously wounded by a high-ranking police officer during a live court session in Nairobi.
The magistrate was shot in the chest and pelvic area by Chief Inspector Samson Kipchirchir Kipruto, the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) of Londiani Police Station, after delivering a ruling in a case involving his wife.
Kipruto is said to have stormed the court after Magistrate Kivuti cancelled the bond granted to his wife, Jenniffer Wairimu, 48, who was in the dock for a criminal case.
Ms. Wairimu, accused of obtaining money by false pretense amounting to Sh2.9 million, had pleaded for release on cash bail, but the court did not grant her request.
Police officers who were present at the time responded and opened fire on the attacker, killing him on the spot, while the magistrate was rushed to hospital after the incident.
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In a statement issued Saturday morning, Chief Justice Martha Koome confirmed the tragic death of the magistrate, condemning the heinous act in the strongest terms possible.
“It is with a heavy heart that I inform the nation that Hon. Monica Kivuti, Principal Magistrate, Makadara Law Courts, has lost the fight against the extensive injuries sustained during an open gun attack in court,” the CJ said on X.
Justice Koome pledged the judiciary’s solidarity with the family and friends of the slain magistrate during this “very difficult period of mourning.”
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