Senior Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul made the ruling, which recommended that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) should press charges against him.
A Nairobi Magistrate’s Court on Friday, October 18 found that Omar Lali is criminally liable for the murder of Tecra Muigai, a move which sets the stage for Lali to face murder charges concerning the death of his ex-girlfriend and the late Keroche Breweries heiress.
Senior Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul made the ruling, which recommended that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) should press charges against him.
The magistrate determined that Lali was responsible for her death, and noted doctors’ reports which evidenced severe injuries, including a fractured skull, and that only two individuals were present at the time of the incident.
She pointed out that the evidence presented by prosecution witnesses during the inquest proved that Lali played a role in Tecra’s death, adding that there was no one else at the scene during the alleged accident except Tecra and her boyfriend, Lali.
Omar Lali poses for a photo with the late Tecra Muigai. /STANDARD DIGITAL
The magistrate also explained that the alleged fall could not have resulted in severe brain damage as evidenced in the postmortem report.
In her decision, the magistrate noted inconsistencies between Omar Lali’s account of events and the findings outlined in the postmortem and medical reports. “The postmortem revealed that Tecra suffered severe head injuries, which were determined to be the cause of her death,” Abdul said.
Tecra Muigai tragically passed away on May 2, 2020, after sustaining fatal injuries in a fall at a house in Shella, Lamu County, where she lived with Lali.
Initially, Lali, who was in a relationship with Muigai at the time, informed investigators that her death resulted from an accidental fall down a flight of stairs. However, he later changed his statement, claiming that Tecra had fallen in the bathroom instead.
Following her death, Lali was arrested and charged with murder in the Lamu Law Courts. However, after reviewing the case, the DPP terminated the murder charges on July 16, 2020, and opted for an open inquest. As a result, Lali was released on bond and granted freedom.
The investigation into Tecra Muigai’s death included thorough examinations, such as toxicology reports, post-mortem analyses, and the retrieval of phone records.
Despite these efforts, the case was surrounded by controversy and allegations. On several occasions, Lali’s freedom was challenged, including a rearrest in July 2020 after new evidence was brought forward by the state.
In March 2021, further complications arose when new information revealed that Lali had coerced Muigai into transferring Ksh1 million to his account. This detail was uncovered by Tecra’s mother, Tabitha Karanja, who is also the current Senator of Nakuru. These revelations prompted the court to summon Lali once again, intensifying the ongoing investigation.
During the hearings, members of Tecra Muigai’s family gave testimonies expressing their suspicions about Lali’s role in her death. Muigai’s brother James Karanja told the court that he believed Lali had used supernatural powers to lure his sister into a relationship as well as isolate her from her family members.
“Omar tried to keep her away from us as a family. She started being aggressive and shouting without any reason. She changed her lifestyle and became a person we did not know,” Karanja said.
In June 2021, Magistrate Zainab Abdul issued arrest warrants for three of Omar Lali’s friends. These individuals had been summoned to court as witnesses but failed to attend the proceedings.
They were believed to be the first people to arrive at the scene following Tecra’s fatal fall, but the failure of these key witnesses to appear in court added further complications to the case.
