A Tharaka Nithi woman accused of extracting four false teeth from a one-month-old boy using a razor blade leading to death at Magutuni market will remain in police custody after a Chuka court on Tuesday denied her bond.
Ms Rose Gatakaa was arrested on Friday last week and produced in court on Monday but she did not take a plea after the investigating officer sought more time to conclude the investigation before charging her. The court granted the request.
On the bond application, the prosecution officer claimed that if the woman is released on bond, she was likely to interfere with investigations and deny the deceased family justice.
He said the woman was yet to be taken to court for mental assessment as directed by the court and that police needed to remain with her for the exercise.
He added that it’s wise to make a decision on whether the woman can be released on bond after a postmortem is conducted on the boy’s remains which will confirm the cause of the death and consequentially inform the charges to be preferred.
Chief Magistrate John Njoroge agreed with the prosecution’s views that Ms Gatakaa should remain in police custody due to the concerns presented by the prosecution.
Issuing the ruling on the bond application, Chief Magistrate John Njoroge said that the prosecution side had convinced the court that the woman could not be released at the moment until the investigation is concluded.
He said the accusations leveled against the woman are serious because in case she is linked to death she is likely to face a murder charge.
The baby died while receiving treatment at Magutuni Sub-County hospital where he was rushed by the mother, Ms Kelly Nkatha, 21 years from Tharaka North Sub-County breeding profusely.
“The matter will be mentioned on January 22, 2021,” Mr Njoroge said.
