Warder who held lover hostage charged with attempted murder

Prison warder who held his lover and their two children hostage near the Uruku GK Prison has been charged with attempted murder.

Constable Douglas Asuma was arrested on Monday evening following a seven-hour hostage crisis near the prison and remanded at the Kariene Police Station.

The warder appeared before Nkubu principal magistrate Duke Ocharo at about 5pm but denied the charge.

He was charged with attempting to kill Ms Rose Muthoni when he shot her on the head after he missed his target —his lover.

Constable Asuma grabbed a gun from a newly posted colleague on Monday morning and tried to shoot his female lover at a park but missed and hit a another woman, Ms Muthoni, who was rushed to Githongo Hospital in critical condition.

The warder then grabbed the woman, his lover, who works in the prison and held her hostage together with two children in his house adjacent to the prison.

On Tuesday, the warder was first taken to Githongo Law Courts but later transferred to Nkubu, since Githongo senior resident magistrate Charles Mayamba was absent.

Detectives then took him to the Nkubu court to avoid breaking the law by holding him for more than 24 hours.

The court ordered the suspect remanded at the Meru GK prison for nine days pending bail ruling.

The magistrate further ruled the warder to before the Githongo Law Courts senior resident magistrate on September 8 to fix the hearing date.

Asuma's victim has been transferred to Kenyatta National Hospital for specialised treatment.