By the 254.ke Newsroom
A Kahawa Law Courts magistrate will rule on October 1, 2026, on whether 15 security officers can be compelled to take plea on fresh charges over the 2022 disappearance of two Indian nationals and their Kenyan taxi driver — a case that has run for more than four years without the three men ever being found.
The magistrate deferred the decision on Wednesday after defence lawyers challenged the prosecution’s bid to revive the case with a new set of 17 charges, following the High Court’s termination of an earlier murder case against the same officers.
What happened to the three men in 2022?
Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan and Mohammed Zaid Sami Kidwai, both Indian nationals, disappeared on the night of July 22, 2022, along with their Kenyan taxi driver, Nicodemus Mwania Mwange. According to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the three were intercepted along Mombasa Road near the Ole Sereni Hotel in Nairobi by officers travelling in four vehicles, who surrounded the car carrying the men.
None of the three has been traced since. Khan and Kidwai had been part of the digital campaign team that worked on President William Ruto’s 2022 presidential bid, a detail that has kept the case in the public eye through successive rounds of court proceedings.
Why is the case back in court now?
The 15 accused — 13 former Special Service Unit (SSU) officers, one National Intelligence Service (NIS) officer and one Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officer — previously faced murder charges over the same disappearance. The High Court terminated that earlier case, and the ODPP has since returned with a different charge sheet built around the Penal Code and the National Intelligence Service Act rather than murder.
The new charges include kidnapping with intent to murder, conspiracy to commit a felony, and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment — 17 counts in total. Defence lawyers argue the prosecution should not be allowed to restart proceedings this way, and it is that objection the magistrate must rule on before the accused can even be asked to plead.
Case timeline at a glance
- July 22, 2022 — Khan, Kidwai and Mwange disappear after being allegedly intercepted near Ole Sereni Hotel, Mombasa Road.
- 2023 — 15 officers are charged over the abduction.
- May 2025 — The High Court orders the earlier murder-linked case against the officers terminated.
- September 2026 — ODPP files 17 fresh charges under the Penal Code and NIS Act; defence opposes the move.
- October 1, 2026 — Kahawa Law Courts to rule on whether the officers must take plea on the new charges.
Who are the accused officers?
The 15 named in the fresh proceedings 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. None has been convicted of any offence connected to the case, and all remain presumed innocent unless a court finds otherwise.
What does the October 1 ruling actually decide?
The ruling will not determine guilt or innocence. It will decide a narrower, procedural question: whether the ODPP is legally entitled to press the new 17-count charge sheet at all, given that an earlier case over the same facts was already thrown out. If the magistrate sides with the prosecution, the 15 officers will be called to formally take plea on the fresh charges. If the defence’s objection succeeds, the case could stall again, extending a disappearance that Khan and Kidwai’s families and rights groups have pressed authorities to resolve for four years.
The case sits alongside a wider pattern of scrutiny over Kenyan security agencies and enforced-disappearance allegations that has drawn attention from parliament, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and human rights organisations in recent years.
FAQ
Who were Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan and Mohammed Zaid Sami Kidwai?
They were Indian nationals who had worked on the digital campaign team for President William Ruto’s 2022 presidential run. They disappeared in July 2022 along with their taxi driver and have never been found.
Why were the murder charges against the officers dropped?
The High Court terminated the earlier murder-linked case in May 2025. The ODPP has now filed a different set of 17 charges under the Penal Code and the National Intelligence Service Act instead.
When will the 15 officers know if they must take plea?
The Kahawa Law Courts magistrate is set to rule on October 1, 2026, on whether the prosecution can proceed with the fresh charges.
Are the 15 officers currently in custody?
The officers remain accused persons pending the October 1 ruling and are presumed innocent unless and until a court finds them guilty.
What agencies were the accused officers attached to?
Thirteen were former Special Service Unit (SSU) officers, one was a National Intelligence Service (NIS) officer, and one was a Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officer.
254.ke has previously covered related security and justice stories, including the Nairobi court’s approval of extraditing three Kenyans to the US over cybercrime charges, the DCI’s push to detain suspects in the Koimburi abduction case, and Kalonzo Musyoka’s criticism of police over separate abduction claims.
For background on the prosecution process, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions outlines how charging decisions and case reviews are handled in Kenya.
