The Embu High Court has extended conservatory orders barring the arrest of Kangema Senior Principal Magistrate Martin Kinyua Mutegi, following a petition he filed through his lawyer, Kamuri Gachoki, who told the court that Magistrate Mutegi's rights were violated after police officers visited him in hospital with the intention of arresting him, and later attempted to access his residence for the same purpose, actions the petitioner characterizes as defiance of an earlier court order.
The matter came up before Justice Richard Mwongo in a virtual session, which also raised the question of whether the petition was properly filed in Embu, given that the alleged offences of solicitation and bribery occurred in Murang'a County. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) approved charges against the magistrate under the Anti-Bribery Act. Prosecutors allege that between July 16 and July 21, 2026, Mutegi solicited 170,000 shillings from a convicted person, Peter Njihia Njuguna, through Kandara Principal Probation Officer Julius Irungu Njogu, in exchange for a favourable sentence. The case will be mentioned on August 4, 2026.
